East’s Aiden Lino challenges a Carson jumper.

Brian Wilhite photo

 

By Mike London

mike.london@salisburypost.com

Third in a series of high school basketball previews …

GRANITE QUARRY — First of all, it’s not easy to win in boys basketball in the South Piedmont Conference.

In the 2022-23 season when East Rowan had a senior class that included 1,000-point scorer Dylan Valley and 6-foot-6 Tee Harris, a Division II scholarship player, the Mustangs went 6-16.

In 2023-24, minus Valley and Harris, East’s games against teams like Central Cabarrus, Robinson and Concord were like watching Jar Jar Binks tangle with Darth Vader. East had no chance. East did well to go 3-21 in Andrew Porter’s final season as head coach, recording two SPC victories against South Rowan, plus a non-conference rout of Gray Stone Day that was less challenging than covering the free space on a bingo card.

Porter was 19-63 in four seasons. East wasn’t exactly lighting it up before he took his turn at the wheel.

East hasn’t had a lot to holler about in boys basketball since the 2011-12 team shocked the world, went 13-12, had a 7-5 record in the North Piedmont Conference and made the 3A state playoffs. Trey Ledbetter, who coached that team, as well as several lesser ones, has returned to the helm for this season. He knows what he signed up for. This is his third tour of duty, but he’s come back rejuvenated.

Ledbetter isn’t promising miracles. He knows miracles happen occasionally, but he’s already experienced one of them in 2012. That may be all that he’s allotted,

East lost some firepower. The Mustangs no longer have Drake Jones and Jonathan Wembolua. Those two double-figure scorers accounted for more than half of East’s meager 48 points per game in 2023-24.

“I’m not going to say we’re rebuilding because we’re planning more of a rebranding,” Ledbetter said. “We just want to get back to playing hard, playing together, being hard-nosed. There was a time when you knew you were in for a tough night when you played East. East would get in your face with man-to-man defense. East would battle you on every possession.”

Ledbetter says his coaching role model was long-time West Rowan coach Mike Gurley because Gurley’s teams usually epitomized playing hard and together.

Ledbetter doesn’t have any Donte Minters or Scooter Sherrills, but he still has three seniors in the program.

Will Klingler, Jaden Reid and PJ Butler are good athletes. All three played key roles for East in a winless football season, but they battled to the end and they came through the season healthy. Klingler and Reid connected for a touchdown on the final play of their high school football careers. As a receiver/DB, Butler may have had as strong a season as anyone on the squad.

Butler scored 66 points for the basketball team last season; Reid scored 55, while Klingler scored 19. All of them have enough foot-speed to be solid defenders, and Ledbetter will take whatever offensive production he can get. They’re not amazing shooters, but they can get buckets off speed and hustle.

“They are three of the better athletes in the school,” Ledbetter said. “They’ll provide some leadership for a young group of guys.”

East also has three juniors. The best known is Aiden Lino. He had several productive games where he scored six or eight points and he finished last season with 62 points. Also in the junior class are Jude Raiti and Jay Blakeney. They have run for the track team and add more speed and quickness.

The sophomore class includes Corbin Krider, Logan Bradley, Brody Thomas and Blake Shive. All of them got some varsity action as freshmen late last season.

Bradley is a dangerous 3-point shooter. His 18 points made the difference in a 63-62 win against South Rowan.

Krider had an 11-point game against Carson. Thomas scored nine against Concord. Shive made the least varsity impact of the four last season, but his size gives him serious upside. He drew rave reviews over the summer as a high-energy rebounder.

East will also have two varsity freshmen. Brady Ailshie is the younger brother of baseball star Harrison Ailshie. He’ll bring some much needed height to the program.

Jaxon Lyons, who had some sensational jayvee football games as a running back, also will be on the varsity squad.

“We’re plugging along right now, having some good practices, making progress and evolving as a team,” Ledbetter said. “We’ve got the pieces to be very competitive. If we play as hard as I think we will, we’ll get to some fourth quarters with a chance to win ballgames.”

Ledbetter believes in playing everyone in the county, so Salisbury is back on East’s schedule.

Ledbeter will have a  staff that will include Mark Lambert, Seth Wyrick and Daryl Honeycutt.

East isn’t expecting to play until December because its early games were scheduled against teams that made the football playoffs.