“Got some bad news, Damien,” drawls Parker. “You didn’t set the school scoring record on Friday, after all. I found an old scorebook and Coach Davis scored 41 points back in 1987.”

Davis nods solemnly.

“Really!” responds Argrett, taken aback.

“And about that school rebounding record you thought you set,” Parker continues, “Coach Davis got 23 rebounds the same night he scored 41.”

“I had a pretty good night,” shrugs Davis.

“Naw, naw!” yelps Argrett in astonishment.

“And Damien, the amazing thing is,” says Parker, “that even if you score 42 points and get 24 rebounds some night soon, I can probably find another old scorebook where Davis got 43 and 25.”

Finally, Argrett realizes he’s being had and all three start laughing.

For the record, Argrett grabbed the school records for both scoring and rebounding in South’s 99-90 win over Northwest Cabarrus. It’s likely the first time that anyone’s accomplished that dazzling double in the same game.

And for the record, while Davis, the No. 5 scorer in South history, did score 31 points against East Rowan and 32 more against South Stokes in ‘87, that was as close as he ever came to 40. Forty-point games just don’t happen. When Argrett reached the milestone it marked only the 15th time a Rowan County player has accomplished the feat.

“He had a heckuva game, but the nice thing about Damien was that he took it all in stride,” says Davis. “He credits his teammates. He knows he finished a lot of 1-on-1 (and some 1-on-2) breaks after other guys broke the press and made the pass.”

What makes that outing really remarkable is the fact that Argrett, a senior who averages a double-double, is playing his first year of varsity ball. Argrett, in fact, is on pace for a season that will place him among the top dozen single-season scorers in South history. Somewhere in the neighborhood of Davis, whose 17.7 scoring average in ‘87 ranks as the eighth best mark in school history.

But unlike Davis, Argrett’s single-season points total will also be his career points total —numbers destined to puzzle future Post statisticians a few decades down the road.

There’s a good reason why Argrett is a one-season wonder. He hit his growth spurt late. He was a 5-10 YMCA guard not so long ago. Now, he’s a long-armed 6-6 center, who is South’s go-to guy.

“I’d see him in the hall last year and say, “Man, you have got to come out for basketball,’” says South guard Drew King. “He’s become a real pleasant surprise.”

“People would see me and wonder what was going on with me,” explains Argrett. “They’d walk up to me and say, ‘Gosh, you’re getting tall.’ I’d always hoped I’d grow and all of a sudden, I did.”

Fortunately for South, Parker noticed Argrett’s changing verticality in his Physical Education class when Argrett was a junior. He also noted that Argrett had skills in addition to his instant height. In a 4A school that’s always starved for size, Parker saw potential.

“Coach Parker got after Damien to get in the weight room,” says Davis. “For a long time he didn’t show. The first day he did come, Bob was shocked. Then he started coming two days a week, then three.”

Finally, Argrett became a regular lifter and as his once-spindly body gained weight and power, there was little doubt he would help South as a senior.

But Argrett suffered a severe setback last July. His father, from whom he inherited his late-blooming height, died unexpectedly. Davis remembers that morning. He got a call from Damien. He remembers the shock and remembers Argrett’s request to ride with him to the school to shoot baskets — anything to get his mind off the tragedy.

Since then, the 30-year-old Davis has been much more than a coach to Argrett. He’s become a big brother, who has taken Argrett under his wing. It’s a two-way street. In a world that is so often “gimme, gimme” Argrett is a breath of fresh air. He understands the opportunity he’s been given by the miraculous changes in his body.

“I know Coach Davis and Dr. (Alan) King (South’s principal) have gone out of their way for me,” he says. “I intend to pay them back — on the court and with the books.”

Davis gives Argrett rides home from practice. Argrett reciprocates by lending advice and encouragement to Davis’ young boys.

“My kids love him,” says Davis. “Not so much because of basketball —because he’s an artist. He draws them Pokemon characters for their notebooks.”

Davis, a 6-4 body builder who looks like he could snap a referee in half, jokingly calls Argrett, “Mr. Landis.” Argrett returns fire by referring to Davis as “CouchPotato.”

“You’ve just got to turn me loose,” says Argrett, launching a 3-pointer during a practice break.

“You’ve never got anything but the green light from me,” answers Davis, laughing.

And so it goes. The banter is always easy, never forced.

Davis’ basketball skills earned him a ride to Division II St. Andrews in Laurinburg and a college degree. He hopes that Argrett’s surge won’t have come too late to deny him a similar opportunity.

“I’m writing to different schools,” Davis says. “All someone has to do is see him play. He’s in the post out of necessity for us, but given time, he’s got the skills to be a 3-man (small forward) in college.”

Argrett is a delightful, unassuming kid. He’s bright and funny and his teachers adore him. He did well on the PSAT and attacked the SAT with gusto for the first time the morning after his 40-point explosion.

“I think I did OK,” he says. “I just want to score well enough to go somewhere. Anywhere.”

The one concern people have about Argrett is that he seems too polite to fight the vicious paint wars that are commonplace in the 4A Central Piedmont Conference.

But Argrett says he has a secret source of inspiration.

“I know my pops is looking down on me, watching me,” he says. “And I want to make him proud.”

Damien, you’re doing just fine.

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