By By Matthew Nascone
Clare Jones proved she was one of the best of the West at Delchamps Gym on the campus of Huntingdon College Feb. 22 in the 38th Annual AISA All-Star Basketball game.
Jones, a senior at Escambia Academy, represented her school in the all-star classic. Her team lost 80-61, but she said she had fun, nonetheless.
"It was fun to be honored and play in the game," Jones said. "There was a lot of great talent there."
Jones was in the first rotation and got to play about 15 minutes. She scored one point on a made free throw.
"It was a lot of fun to see all those girls that had been my 'enemies' during the season," she said. "I really got to like a bunch of them, especially two of the girls I roomed with from Patrician (Academy). It was fun to meet all the best players from around the state and play on the same team with them."
One twist for Jones was getting to play against a former coach.
"Chad Prewett was the coach of the East squad and it was interesting to get to play against a coach I had played for in the past," Jones said.
Prewett was the Lady Cougars' head coach when Jones was an eighth grader in 2004. Current Lady Cougars head coach Keri Payne was proud for Jones.
"I thought she did good," Payne said. "It was a great experience for her to play with the best of the best. She seemed to be a little nervous when she saw the height of the other team since they had two or three girls who were taller than 6-foot-1. But I told her to go out and have fun and not worry about it."
Jones may have scored only one point in the game, but she will be able to say she played in an all-star game for the rest of her life.