Former Lumberton High star Stargell Love makes his return to the area today in the David Currie Classic in Red Springs.
Leaders of national elite programs are expected to attend the fifth annual David Currie Classic, a 16-team boys' and girls' basketball tournament featuring several of the nation's top high school players that tips off this afternoon.
The tournament spans three days and will be played in the gyms at Flora Mcdonald Academy and Red Springs High.
FMA boys' coach and event coordinator Derrick Bond says this year's field is, without a doubt, the most talented crop of teams ever assembled in the Classic.
"This is going to be a true quality event," Bond said. "We have some of the top basketball players in the country. There will definitely be some big-time coaches in the building and various national media outlets."
FMA, which opens the boys' schedule of games at 3:30 p.m. vs. Upper Room, is off to a 3-2 start and is led by 6-foot-8 N.C. State verbal commitment, Luke Cothron. Cothron scored 42 points last week in a loss to national prep power, Oak Hill (Va.) Academy.
Bond says his team's strength is defense, starting with 6-foot-10 center Darrick Martin.
"Darrick allows us to put pressure on the opposition," Bond said. "He blocks a lot of shots. Luke (Cothron) gives us a high-low game because he can shoot from the outside."
The first round's marquee boys' game is a battle between Quality Education Academy (Winston-Salem) and Red Springs at 8:30 p.m, features the tournament's top player, Quincy Miller, making his return to the area.
"I expect all the games to be real competitive, especially Friday's winner's bracket," said Lamont Taylor, Miller's uncle and coach of the AAU Robeson Rockets. "This tournament will definitely be a highlight show."
Miller is a 6-foot-8, 190-pound junior with a skill set that has college programs salivating. The Chicago native has over 100 scholarship offers and ranks No. 3 in the Rivals.com 2011 class.
In an interview earlier this fall with Scout.com, QUA coach Isaac Pitts said Miller can handle the ball and shoot for his size — tools NBA scouts seem to magnify.
"He won't play four years in college, unless he chooses to," Pitts said.
Miller tallied a triple-double Wednesday night in the Fighting Pharaohs' win over Victory Christian. Miller's line? 18 points, 20 rebounds and 10 blocks.
"It's hard to believe how far he has come," Taylor said. "I watched him play as a freshman at Fairmont and dominate the game with rebounds and blocks. I took him up to Charlotte his sophomore season to play at Quality Education. Now, he's a complete player."
Miller says he's in no rush to narrow his choices and will likely wait until his senior season to do so.
Quality Education's starting lineup also features Stargell Love, a former player at Lumberton High. Love, at 6-foot-2 180 pounds, is a physical shooting guard with great explosiveness in the paint.
Taylor says Love is an under-the-radar athlete and recalls his star-studded matchup last season with Kentucky point guard John Wall.
Wall was annointed by most media outlets as the nation's top player in the 2009 class.
"Those two boys put on a show," Taylor said, after watching Quality Education play against Raleigh's Word of God Christian Academy. "Stargell had 22 (points) and Wall had 24.
Love is being pursued by Baylor, UNC-Charlotte, Marquette, Mississippi State and South Carolina.
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