| MOCKSVILLE — Davie County boys basketball coach Jim Young had his
first great Pennsylvania high school team 19 seasons ago.
A ball signed by the members of that 29-4
regional finalist rests in an honored place in Young’s office— right next to the
frequently opened refrigerator.
“No 3-point line in those days,”
remembers Young. “But we had a kid who scored 2,000 career points. Another kid got a
thousand. Everyone else was unselfish, knew their roles.”
Then a sheepish smile crosses Young’s
weathered face. “Come to think of it,” he adds, “those guys were a helluva
lot like my team this year.”
Davie takes on North Davidson tonight.
Other area games include South Rowan at South Iredell, East Rowan at West Rowan, Ledford
at Salisbury, East Davidson at North Rowan and A.L. Brown at North Iredell.
n
Young’s current Davie team boasts a
similar 1-2 punch. Homegrown guard Sean Stevens (5-foot-7) and versatile Yugloslav
exchange student Nemanja “Kretchko” Kreckovic (6-2) are a pair of mini-Minters.
Together, they average as many points (51) as some teams.
“Sean might score 40 and Kretchko
30,” said Young. “Next game, they’ll reverse that. If you shut one down,
the other can take over.”
With Dan Sullivan and Chris Stein screening
and point man Micah Garner finding the scorers, Davie’s offense hums. The War Eagles
reached 100 points in 25 minutes against South Iredell. Last week, they blasted South
Rowan with a 36-point first quarter to secure a state playoff berth.
“When we’re on,” says Young,
who runs his team with a mixed bag of screams and hugs, “we can play with
anybody.”
It’s true. While Young’s current
14-6 squad won’t approach his 29-4 team’s bottom line, it’s about as good
as a team can be without a big man.
Some fans caught Stevens’ act for the
first time last Friday in Landis and were shocked that he rained in 9-of-20 3-pointers and
tallied 37 points. But that was no surprise. That’s who Stevens is and what he does.
Stevens makes the sky fall on some opponent twice a week.
Stevens, who has gone well over 1,000
points in just two varsity seasons, dropped 43 against South in the CPC tourney last year,
43 more against High Point Andrews on Jan. 30. Against Andrews, defending 3A state champ,
Stevens set the state record for 3-pointers in a game (12), while tying the record for
attempts (24).
Stevens isn’t shy about shooting. But
he nails better than 40 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. That accuracy on 3s produces
as many points as shooting 60 percent on 2s. No wonder his light stays green.
Stevens has broken former UNC star Donald
Williams’ state record for 3-point attempts in a season (253) and has a shot at
Reidsville High’s Robert Doggett’s single-season record of 123 makes. Stevens
has connected 106 times.
“Sean’s got that little-man
attitude,” chuckles Young. “Knock him down and he’ll put a 3 in your face.
Then he wants to take the ball away from you and put another 3 in your face.”
n
Davie’s gotten serious mileage out of
exchange students. Djordje Lukic helped Young win the Sam Moir Christmas Classic two years
ago. Ed Zajmovic was Davie’s No. 2 scorer last season and Vuk Guberinic is one of the
current team’s reserves. Zajmovic told Kreckovic that Davie would be the perfect
setting for him to pursue an American college education through a basketball scholarship.
Much as foes would love to gang up on
Stevens, Davie’s latest import makes that impossible. Twice, the slick son of a coach
has topped 40 points.
“Kretchko got 41 his first game,”
said Young. “He felt he had to prove himself. After that, the guys said, ‘Coach,
I guess we’ll have to keep this guy.’ ”
The 6-2 Belgrade native isn’t as
deadly as Stevens from 3, but he’s mastered the 2. Kreckovic owns an extensive
repertoire of fakes, a deceptive first step and the ability to stop on a dime, pull up and
bury a fadeaway jumper.
“He’s got nifty moves, pro
moves,” said Stevens.
Kreckovic plays with unusual savvy and
maturity, but there’s a reason.
“At home, he saw some hard
things,” said Stevens. “He told me he was walking down the street once when a
bomb went off a hundred yards away.”
That’s why Kreckovic isn’t
concerned when he sees one of those 6-8 guys from R.J. Reynolds coming after his shot.
Making the Stevens-Kreckovic combo truly
unique is that Young gets those 50 points a night from one household. Stevens’ family
is the host for Kreckovic, so the shooting stars share the same breakfast table. They are
essentially brothers.
“Sean’s parents (Bob and Candy)
have been so gracious,” said Young. “They never worried that the new kid was
going to steal their boy’s bacon. They’re as happy when Kretchko gets big
numbers, as when Sean does.”
Young jokes that he always sends two balls
home with his bombers so they don’t get in a fight, but actually they’ve shared
everything. Well, except soft drinks.
“We have our skirmishes like any
brothers,” said Stevens. ”See, I love Mountain Dew, but then we never seemed to
have any in the refrigerator once Kretchko got here. I had to tell him not to mess with my
Dews.”
n
Stevens says he and Kreckovic exchanged a
series of emails over the summer, but he had no idea what to expect until his new
“brother” arrived physically.
“I didn’t know if I’d be
able to talk to him, so I was apprehensive,” said Stevens. “But he’s fluent
in English, he’s funny and he’s a good guy. I treat him like I would anyone
else.”
In the fall, Stevens and Kreckovic had a
blast pounding people in YMCA pickup games. Everyone recognized Stevens, but no one had
any idea who that stranger tagging along with him was.
“They usually let me pick one
team,” Stevens said. “I’d pick Kretchko first. He was always a
bargain.”
A bargain in more ways than one.
Kreckovic’s brought more to Mocksville than basketball brilliance. He’s brought
perspective.
“I’m glad Kretchko got this
opportunity, because I’ve learned from him that Americans take too much for
granted,” said Stevens. “Knowing him has been a once in a lifetime experience.
No way I’d ever take it back.”
n
Contact Mike London at 704-797-4259 or mlondon@salisburypost.com . |
Today's News
