The ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic boys basketball team will remember the 2023-24 season forever.
The Irish achieved a state title, new records and accolades on top of each other.
Senior Jayallen Turner and sophomore Zaden Ranson were recognized as members of the Class AA All-State first team.
Turner was tabbed captain of the eight-member team. Turner finishes his prep basketball career as a three-time Class AA first-team selection.
Turner becomes the fifth ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic player since 2000 selected as a first-team all-state captain, joining Aiden Satterfield, Nick George, Sam Wood and Bo King.
ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic coach Hunter Moles said in an interview in November that Turner was due for a big year.
“Jay is going to have a big year,†Moles said. “He’s worked on his game a lot in the offseason. He’s going to impress people with his shooting from the outside. It was hard for me, as a coach, to tell the guy to shoot from the outside when I felt no one could stop him from getting to the rim.â€
Needless to say, Moles was looking into the crystal ball clearly.
Turner finished his final season in kelly green and white as ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic’s all-time leading scorer with 1,670 points.
He averaged 20 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals his senior season.
“He was constantly trying to step out of his comfort zone and do whatever it took to win,†Moles said of Turner.
“He guarded the other team’s best player a lot of nights. Luckily, we had some other guys that could defend at a high level too, but sometimes we needed him to score a lot. We needed him to just play and create. He constantly worked on his game.â€
Turner has not decided what the next step in his basketball journey holds. However, Moles knows that whoever gets the state champion guard will get a good one.
“Whoever gets him is going to get a guy that is going to work hard,†Moles said. “He’s going to be a guy that gets in the gym during his free time. He’s a guy that likes to defend and isn’t going to talk back or cause any issues. He’s going to be a team-first guy.
“Obviously, his athleticism and skill is good, but the other little things [are] what college coaches like from him. He’s been fun to coach.â€
Ranson stepped up in a significant way for the Irish.
His play some nights mimicked that of Dennis Rodman during his tenure in the NBA.
Ranson finished his sophomore season averaging 11 points and nine rebounds, including four offensive rebounds per game.
His tenacious play was on display during ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic’s three state tournament games, in which Ranson averaged 10 points and 10 rebounds.
“I’m glad he’s getting the credit he deserves, because he is a huge piece to our team,†Moles said. “His rebounding is amazing. He just has the stuff you cannot teach. He’s the type of kid, when you start coaching a little harder, then he really embraces it and tries to step it up to the next level. He’s amazing and fun to coach. He just goes out there and outworks people a lot of times.â€
Ranson has become a player that coaches dream about having.
“He’ll do whatever it takes,†Moles said. “We always tell the guy that you don’t need a title to be a leader. Sometimes you think, as a sophomore, you can’t be a leader. He was pretty vocal in practice this year. I was glad to see that. We’re excited to see that type of play, because it’s contagious.â€
Bluefield also supplied two first-team players. Seniors RJ Hairston and Kamron Gore were selected.
Williamstown’s Parker Schramm, Wyoming East’s Cole Lambert, Chapmanville’s Zion Blevins and Ravenswood’s Beau Bennett round out the first team.
Wheeling Central’s Quinton Burlenski is the captain of the second team. His Maroon Knight teammate Eli Sancomb was also listed on the second team.
Trinity’s Chayce Adams, Magnolia’s Hayden Pyles, Williamstown’s Cruz Isaly, Chapmanville’s Joey Gollihue, Summers County’s Brandon Isaac and Ritchie County’s Isaac Hodge all earned second-team all-state honors.
