Philip Simmons’ Haight and Green close in on the 1,000 career point mark
Philip Simmons High School has been open for only three years, but the boys’ basketball team will soon honor two players for lifetime achievement awards.
Seniors Marc Haight and Jaylen Green were both closing in on 1,000 career points heading into Tuesday night’s game against Bishop England. Haight needed just 11 points to crack the magical barrier, while Green was just 76 points away from the milestone.
Coach Garrett Campbell says both players bring different talents to the table. Haight is a 5’10” point guard who has the outside shot to play shooting guard. Green is 6’4” and is a natural at either shooting guard, shooting forward or power forward.
“Marc is a natural point guard, and he’s a really good scorer and assist man. More importantly, he’s been our leader on and off the court. He’s been our most consistent player.”
Green also earned high praise.
“Jaylen’s our most talented and most athletic player,” Campbell said. “He goes to the rim at will. He’s shown a great deal of improvement since he arrived here.”
Green began play this week with a team high of 14.7 points per game. Haight was averaging 9 points per game, hitting 41% from the field.
Both players’ careers didn’t begin at Philip Simmons. Haight played at Palmetto Christian his freshman and sophomore years where he scored approximately 500 points. Green played his freshman year at Hanahan High before moving over to PSHS.
Haight said just the thought of scoring 1,000 points in a career is “pretty crazy.”
“If you think about it, only a few players in the state have reached that number,” Haight added. “It’s a personal achievement, but I couldn’t do it without the help from my teammates. We have three seniors on the team and we have learned to play well together.”
Haight is also an accomplished student with a 3.8 GPA and plans to major in sports management. He says he has offers from Ole Miss and Alabama to join the teams as a preferred walk-on.
Philip Simmons owned a 7-8 record heading into Tuesday’s game against undefeated Bishop England. The team owned victories over two Class AAAAA schools: Summerville and Stratford. The Iron Horses dropped a 4-point decision to Class AAAAA West Ashley on Monday, Jan.6, in a game Campbell said the Iron Horses should have won.
“It’s been a really good season so far,” said Campbell. “We played in an overnight tournament in Hilton Head and beat a team from Florida, so that’s a plus.”
The Iron Horses begin Region 6-AA play Friday night with a clash against North Charleston.
Campbell said Haight and Green will be honored for eclipsing 1,000 points at an upcoming home game.