Talent beyond youth: Carson Attorney overcomes deficit to win championship

Published 12:02 am Friday, March 6, 2015

Carson Attorney team’s Kameron Carter drives to the basket for a layup against the Natchez Heating and Cooling team during the Miss-Lou Youth Basketball League championship. Carson Attorney won the game 31-10 led by Carter’s 14 points. (Sam Gause / The Natchez Democrat)

Carson Attorney team’s Kameron Carter drives to the basket for a layup against the Natchez Heating and Cooling team during the Miss-Lou Youth Basketball League championship. Carson Attorney won the game 31-10 led by Carter’s 14 points. (Sam Gause / The Natchez Democrat)

vidalia — Down by one point after the first quarter of the 10-and-under championship game in the Miss-Lou Youth Basketball League, Carson Attorney coach Derrick Carson wasn’t worried about his team.

“I told them just to play their game,” he said. “That is all they needed to do. We know what they can do, it is just about the kids going out and playing their game.”

What Carson Attorney did was outscore Natchez Heating and Cooling 27-5 in the final three quarters, to take the title, 31-10.

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“It is good for the kids to get this experience,” Carson said. “It isn’t about the wins and losses, as much as it is about giving the kids an experience and opportunity to learn the game.”

The backcourt tandem of Cameron Jones and Kameron Carter alongside center Derrick Cayden Carson, proved to be the difference down the stretch.

Jones scored all four first quarter points for Carson Attorney, but it was only a matter of time until his teammates stepped in.

Carter posted six second quarter points, while Derrick Cayden Carson chipped in with two of his own.

“Those three kids, with Cameron and Kameron playing guards and Derrick playing center, it was hard for teams to match up with the athleticism they put on the floor,” Derrick Carson said.

The show was just beginning though, as Carter continued to find the bottom of the net.

He added another six points in the third quarter, including a shot at the buzzer to bring his total to a game-high 14. Derrick Cayden Carson also filled up the scoring column in the third quarter, posting six points as well.

Although they went down, Natchez Heating and Cooling didn’t do so without a fight.

“It could have been better,” head coach Stephanie Bourke said. “If the score could’ve been closer, they would’ve had a lot more fun.”

Gabriel Bourke was the leading scorer for Natchez Heating and Cooling with five of the team’s 10 points.

Despite being at a young age, Carson said he sees potential in the kids that took the floor Thursday, and hopes they can one day be the future stars of the area.

“If they stick with it, they can be,” he said.