Wednesday, December 13, 2000
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Wednesday, December 13, 2000 |
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Lockett signs with Western Carolina By MICHAEL BOYLAN L.T. Lockett is a soft-spoken individual. His coach, Rick Francis calls him a "quiet leader - one who leads his team by example." Perhaps this is why teams are taken aback when he explodes on the court. Lockett is the leading scorer for the Patriots and has been a member of the Sandy Creek varsity squad during all four years of his high school career. He is also soon to be a Western Carolina Catamount. Lockett signed a letter of intent Monday morning. "I got interested in their program while attending a summer camp," said Lockett, who looks forward to contributing to the team. "I work hard everyday, can bring leadership at the point guard position and just hope that I can make the team a better team." Coach Francis knows that Lockett will be a great additon to the Western Carolina program as well. "He is definitely a scoring threat," he said. Lockett has been the leading scorer in every game for the Patriots this season, most recently netting 35 points against Salem High School. Both the coach and the player are excited about the prospects for the Patriots this season. They are in a new region and classification and have faced a vast array of new opponents, including Westlake, Salem and Rockdale County. "There's some added competition this year," said Lockett. "We're seeing some different strategies and getting some different looks." Francis agrees, stating that teams like Creekside, Jones County and Westlake are some very strong teams. Complementing Lockett's presence on the floor this year are juniors William Belton and Corey Adams. Both players have been on varsity all three years but are now more mature physically and mentally. "If a team decides to try to shut down L.T.," Francis said, "these two guys will hurt them." The Patriots are currently 8-2 and will travel to Heritage Friday and Fayette County Saturday. Game times are at 7 p.m. and 6 p.m. respectively. |
