Simmons High School senior Ver’eisha Robinson, the Planters Bank Player of the Week, has always had the talent to make a big impact on the Devilettes basketball team.
And, recently, the 6-foot-1 post player is starting to do just that.
Robinson had one of the best games of her career Friday night in Simmons’ 53-51 victory over Humphreys County High School during the Humphreys County Christmas Tournament. Robinson had 12 points, six rebounds and one steal in the game and also made a number of crucial plays down the stretch to help seal the win for the Devilettes. The victory was payback for Humphreys who had defeated Simmons 56-45 10 days earlier in Bezoni.
Simmons followed up their victory Friday with a decisive 62-25 victory over J.Z. George High School Saturday to conclude the tournament. The Devilettes advanced all the way to the MHSAA Class A state title game last season and with an 8-2 record to begin the season this year, they are hoping to make a similar run in 2020.
Robinson is one of three senior leaders in this year’s squad. She started the season coming off the bench, but her fine play has now moved her into the starting lineup, Simmons coach Bernita Alexander said.
“She is a solid player for us who has a lot of experience,” Coach Alexander said. “She understands how to use her size in the post. She is improving and that is important.”
Robinson’s post play will go a long way in deciding how far the Devilettes go this season. Simmons has a number of talented players who are capable of having big nights scoring. In their victory over J.Z. George, for example, four Devilette players scored in double digits. Sophomore Taylor Lucas-Howard led Simmons with 16 points. Junior Nicole Maybell scored 13 points. Na’Riah Robinson scored 11 points, and Carl’Kaisha Lucas scored 10 points.
Lucas-Howard leads the team this season in scoring with a 15-point-per-game average. Lucas is averaging 9.8 points per game. Na’Riah Robinson is averaging 9.9 points per game, and Maybell is averaging 8.3 points per game.
Coach Alexander said she believes her team can still get a lot better by the time the postseason comes around.
“I still see a lot of things we need to work on to get to where we want to be, but we have definitely done some good things so far,” Coach Alexander said.
The Devilettes’ next game is scheduled for Friday night at LeFlore County. Simmons is scheduled to return home Jan. 10 against West Tallahatchie.
