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Miriam Walker-Samuels is not the only Claflin head basketball coach with an apparent talent "pipeline" to Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School.
The latest Bruin to sign with Panthers' men's basketball coach Ron Woodard is shooting guard Edward Green. A two-year letterman, the 5-10 incoming freshman provided a scoring punch from the Region 7-AAAA champions as he averaged 12.8 points, four rebounds and three steals per game as a senior.
Green's best outing took place Jan. 30 at defending region and Class 4-A Lower State champion Goose Creek. He scored a career-best 32-points in the 77-74 victory which clinched the region championship for O-W. The Bruins went undefeated in Region 7-AAAA and finished the season with a 20-4 mark.
"I think Coach Woodard needed a scoring two and he can flat out shoot it," O-W head coach Alex Barron. "He'll help in the shooting department."
The signing comes almost a week after the Pantherettes received letters of intent from O-W backup center Lasaundra Barron and Swansea forward and Class 3-A Player of the Year Donisha Albert and former Bruinette point guard Alisha Holmes, transferring to Claflin from East Tennessee State.
Green joins a Claflin roster which includes former O-W forward/center Casey Johnson and is entering its third season transitioning into the NCAA Division II Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The conference also includes Benedict College, where Barron's son, Zachary, will be entering his junior season after helping the Tigers reach the NCAA Division II playoffs.
The other former players under Barron also suiting up next season are guard Rob Fields of Catawba College and center Kendrick Johnson of Newberry, who was named to the South Atlantic Conference's All-Freshman Team after shattering the school record for career blocks with 45.
T&D Senior Sports Writer Thomas Grant Jr. can be reached by e-mail at tgrant@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5547.