JD’s Jasmine Walker 7A’s Miss Basketball & POTY
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (ahsaa.com)  — Jeff Davis High School senior Jasmine Walker and J.O. Johnson junior John Petty were named the Miss Basketball and Mr. Basketball for 2016, respectively, Wednesday afternoon at the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s luncheon held at the Alabama Activities Center. The Alabama High School Athletic Directors & Coaches Association sponsors the annual luncheon.
Petty was named Mr. Basketball and Walker was named Miss Basketball by the Alabama Sports Writers Association. The ASWA’s prep basketball all-state committee made the selections.
Walker, a 6-foot-3 forward, averaged 19.6 points and 8.5 rebounds to lead the Vols to a second straight Class 7A championship. Her four-year career totals include 1,900 points, 908 rebounds and a 102-26 win-loss record. She’s a three-time All-State player and a Florida State signee.
Petty, a 6-foot-6 guard, scored 18.9 points and grabbed seven rebounds per game, helping the Jaguars win their second state title in a row – the 2016 crown coming in J.O. Johnson’s final year. The school is reopening next school year as Mae Jemison High. Petty is a three-time All-State player.
Both were also named to the state’s Super 5 list a year ago. Petty is a two-time Class 5A player of the year.
Petty, who edged out 7A player of the year Austin Wiley of Spain Park, 84 points to 74 in the sportswriters’ polling, is just the third junior to win Mr. Basketball in the award’s 32-year history, joining John Carroll’s Ronald Steele (2003) and Butler’s Trevor Lacey (2010). Both Steele and Lacey were two-time Mr. Basketball recipients. Wiley is also a junior. Walker totaled 75 points to Class 6A player of the year Japonica James’ 50 points in the voting.
The ASWA has presented the Miss Basketball Award annually since 1988.
With Walker, Jeff Davis is the fifth school to have both a Mr. and Miss Basketball winner. Previously, Butler, Huffman, Midfield and Ramsay had at least one winner from each gender.
Mr. and Miss Basketball, the ASWA’s Super 5 players and each classification’s player of the year were named Wednesday at a luncheon in downtown Montgomery at the Alabama Activity Center. Former Miss Basketball Tonya Tice Peoples, Oxford High School’s girls’ basketball coach, was the keynote speaker. Peoples, who recently stepped down as head coach, was the 1991 recipient.
They were presented by the Alabama High School Athletic Directors and Coaches Association. The Alabama Sports Writers Association began naming a Mr. Basketball in 1985 and a Miss Basketball in 1988.
Three boys’ and three girls’ finalists in each of the seven AHSAA classifications and three finalists from the AISA were honored at the luncheon.
Individual AHSAA 2016 classification players of the year selected by the ASWA were:
BOYS: Austin Wiley, Spain Park (7A); Javien Williams, Woodlawn (6A); John Petty, J.O. Johnson (5A); Trey Petty, Westminster Christian (4A); Joshua Langford, Madison Academy (3A); Triston Chambers, Cold Springs (2A); Diante Wood, Sacred Heart Catholic (1A).
GIRLS: Jasmine Walker, Jeff Davis (7A); Japonica James, LeFlore (6A); Kaitlyn Rodgers, Wenonah (5A); Charity Brown, Sipsey Valley (4A); Emma Wallen, Lauderdale County (3A); Lacey Stafford, Geneva County (2A); Harriet Winchester, Keith (1A).
