The hunter is now the hunted: HOCO Bears ready themselves for a season in the spotlight

The

last time the Houston County Bears played a regulation basketball game they

lost. That game was earlier this year in the GHSA Sweet 16 and for the program,

despite the outcome, it was a huge step forward. A step forward that now has

the once underdog program in the spotlight rather in the shadows of Region

1-6A. Bears head coach Don Hudson, the reigning region coach of the year, and

what was a veteran laden team of juniors and seniors (and sophomore guard HB

Morgan) won the region title and pretty much shocked the county, region and

most of high school basketball fans in the state. This season the hunter is now

the hunted and Hudson knows it.

“People expect for us to be legit [this

season],” said Hudson by phone Sunday afternoon. “This team has an

expectation of what needs to be done. They know the Coffee’s, the Valdosta’s,

the Lee County’s, they know the Warner Robins’ and that experience we have

makes a big difference.”

The

biggest difference will start and stop with those experienced players the Bears

are bringing back, namely guards TJ and HB Morgan, Charlie Brown, Isaia Harris

(a receiver on the football team), forwards Dereck Cotton, Jakobe Nelson,

Brantley Busch and Jamikel Searcy, who missed the 2018-19 season with an

injury. Nelson and Cotton came off the bench last season and according to

Hudson “really helped” en route to becoming key reserves on the Bears

region title run and state playoff journey.

The Bears will also have Eric Ross

and Kyrie Colvin, both of whom also played well off the bench last season,

coming back this season. In

no particular order the Morgan brothers and Brown are vital to the team’s

success this season. Losing seniors Xavier Duncan and Austin Sloan, two of the

team’s top scorers and it’s top rebounders, will be tough to replace but the

trio has the ability to do just that this season. The senior Morgan has been

with the program, playing the role of playmaker and clutch scorer more than

ever and the younger Morgan, a junior, really blossomed during the region

season as a sophomore. The Bears don’t make it as far as they did last

postseason without him. Brown, a scorer, -he had a number of 20-plus point

games last season- will be counted on to provide even more points this season. Busch

will be new to varsity ball after a couple season on the JV level. “He’s

one of the guys that grew into his own this summer,” said Hudson. The

summer has been good to the program in more ways than one with the team having

played in camps at Georgia Southern University and Mercer University in

preparation of what will be a tough pre-region season. According to Hudson that

is by design.

“We

will be jumping off against three experienced programs so we can have an idea

of who we are early on,” said Hudson of the Bears playing at Warner Robins

on Tuesday, Nov. 12 and against powerhouse programs from Eagle’s Landing High

School and Morgan County High School in a tournament at Douglas County High

School. “My expectation for this team is for them to play like experienced

players every game,” adds Hudson.

 “Last year we felt our way through

the season, this year we need to go make it happen.”

The

Bears will also have regular season meetings with Veterans (Dec. 3 and Jan.

14), at West Laurens (Nov. 26) and against Cedar Grove on the campus of Central

Georgia Technical College in Macon.

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