Grantham ready to get maximum effort from players

By Andrew Stevens
Published in Sports on November 19, 2013 1:46 PM

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astevens@newsargus.com

First-year Rosewood High varsity girls' basketball coach Rick Grantham knows his team lacks depth this season.

But he's familiar with the players and their abilities after coaching several of them on the middle school level.

"I think they know how I think," Grantham said. "My DNA is all about competition and they see that. I'm not just a coach. I'm the CEO of an organization and my job is to put the best workers in the best position to be successful."

The Eagles return an experienced five starters.

The bench is a work in progress.

Grantham says he's "comfortable" with the first group and that he "might be comfortable with the rest of them by January.

Sophomore Lexi Mercer, an all-Carolina 1-A Conference pick last season, averaged 18 points and nearly four steals a game last season. Grantham will depend on senior guard Alicia Burns, who knocked down 11 points per game last season, to take some of the scoring burden off of Mercer.

"We have to have dependable second-level scoring," Grantham said. "Alicia feels like she's put in the work in the off-season and she's been working toward this for three or four years. We're going to need Lexi and Alicia to score for us."

Sophomore Krystal Yelverton has earned the point guard duties in practice. Yelverton has shown an ability to distribute the ball to the necessary places in practice and has improved on the defensive end of the court.

Senior Deziree Baker is expected to start at forward with Hayley Mercer and Callie Thornton competing for time at center. Ashley Thornton, Nakia Williams, Melanie Smith and Jessica Conger round out the Eagles' 10-player roster.

Rosewood finished 17-8 last season with former head coach Ryan Wells, who is now at Charles B. Aycock. The Eagles reached the Carolina 1-A Conference tournament championship game and advanced to the second round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association playoffs.

Grantham expects to build on that success.

"I believe that once you get to the point where you've been to the playoffs and you're trying to advance in the playoffs, it's not just a fantasy," Grantham said. "It is something you've seen and done it creates a different mentality. You still have the goal, but you don't have to talk about it constantly because you've been there and you know what it's like."