Navi Hewitt dominates as South defeats PHS, 85-67

Parkersburg South senior Navi Hewitt scored a game-high 34 points as the Patriots defeated Parkersburg 85-67, Tuesday night at Rod Oldham Athletic Center. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)
PARKERSBURG – Instant celebrity.
As he exited the locker room following the postgame chat by his coaches, Parkersburg South senior Navi Hewitt was greeted by a raucous South Psychos student section at center court. And deservedly so.
Hewitt scored a game-high 34 points, including a mind-boggling 20 points in the second quarter, as South stayed unbeaten after defeating Parkersburg 85-67 Tuesday night at Rod Oldham Athletic Center.
“That was a lot of fun – I love our student section,” Hewitt said of his welcoming committee.
South (2-0) led by as many as 24 points early in the fourth quarter, and even though the Patriots could not quite find the final dagger, coach Mike Fallon was pleased with the overall body of work. Including Hewitt finding his comfort zone within the South basketball family after transferring from Parkersburg Christian following his sophomore year.

Parkersburg South’s Navi Hewitt, left, and Taj Joyce surround Parkersburg point guard Nathan Rodriguez (25) during Tuesday’s game at Rod Oldham Athletic Center. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)
“That was pretty impressive,” Fallon said in reference to Hewitt’s second-quarter effort. “Wes Mitchem had a quarter like that my second or third year here. That’s probably the last time I’ve seen somebody light it up like that.
“Last year, we probably should have given Navi some JV minutes – we threw him into the fire early and he struggled. But he never pouted or got upset. We sat him the second half of last year. He probably played six or seven minutes a game, but he never pouted. He came back in the spring and he was ready to go. That’s a testament to him. “
PHS (0-3) fell behind 7-0 in the first two minutes of the game, but answered with 11 straight points of its own. The Big Reds’ resiliency was never an issue throughout. Finding depth to give players a breather, however, was another story.
PHS starters Nate Rodriguez, Quentin Wilson and Isaac Dailey played the entire 32 minutes trying to apply the press and defend the press.
“We are figuring us out,” PHS coach Phil Wilson said. “We know who we are. Now, it’s a matter of trusting in these other kids more and being able to put them in the game. Right now, we are only playing seven kids. We have to bump that up to 10. The other guys, now is the time they have to start showing us in practice and getting some minutes in.

Parkersburg’s Mathias Williams boxes out Parkersburg South’s Navi Hewitt on a free throw attempt during Tuesday’s game at Rod Oldham Athletic Center. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)
“When you are playing a team that presses you like this, that’s a hard ask for guys to play every second of the game.”
Handling the primary ballhandling duties, South’s Harry Silvis couldn’t find his shot but managed to involve Hewitt on the press-breaker. In the second half, Silvis became the aggressor and made the free-throw line his friend – finishing the game 11-of-12 from the stripe as part of his 18 points.
Matthew Mullen also scored in double figures for South after pouring in 15 points. Taj Joyce, who only has a week and a half of practices under his belt after starting for a South football team which made the playoffs, fouled out with four points.
“Taj (Joyce) is still struggling – when we get him in game shape he is going to be an animal,” Fallon said. “Harry and Taj didn’t play really great and we still had a 20-point lead with those two guys not playing overly well.”
Giving fits for South throughout was the senior Rodriguez with 23 points. Teammate Isaac Dailey knocked down three 3-pointers and finished with 16 points.

Parkersburg South’s Mason Nutter (0) tries to chase down Parkersburg’s Isaac Dailey (2) during Tuesday’s game at Rod Oldham Athletic Center. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)
Following a lengthy team meeting after the loss, coach Wilson discussed about players off the bench now stepping up and giving the Big Reds more than seven players to work with.
An ankle injury to starter Zane Lewis didn’t help matters. The senior left the game in the final moments of the first half and returned to the floor during the second half in his warmups.
“We’ll see about Zane after he has had 24 hours or so before practice starts,” Wilson said. “Luckily we don’t play for another 10 days or so. Hopefully he will be back by then.
“It was more so he tweaked it, then he got racked up on it. Zane going out hurts a lot.”
The two teams played the first quarter on even terms tied at 11. Then the crowd was treated to the Hewitt show. His third bucket of the second quarter – a 3-pointer – capped a 10-0 run to extend the lead to 21-11.
A PHS free throw snapped the drought, but Hewitt went back to work in dramatic fashion. He received a downcourt pass from Silvis and finished the drive with a two-handed slam – one of two dunks on the evening.
Several moments later, Hewitt used the Euro step for the lay-in and two points then followed with yet another of his four 3-pointers in the period as part of a 9-0 spurt to increase the lead to 30-12.
Trailing 37-16, PHS stayed within shouting distance – closing to within 42-25 when Dailey just beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer. Hewitt finished with nine made field goals during the second quarter.
“I remember we got down by three or four points, and thought I got to turn it up,” Hewitt said. “Last year was a lot of learning year for me. I had to experience what coach Fallon and these guys are like and how hard we put in practice every day.
“I feel like I have the whole town behind me. I just love everyone’s support. The coaches have all kinds of confidence in me. Before our first game of the season, coach Fallon told me just go out there and play with confidence. And that’s what I’ve been doing.”
South maintained a 69-53 lead in the fourth quarter then created some breathing room with an 8-0 spurt. Four different Patriots contributed to the scoring.
“I’m proud of my kids – I’m proud of the way they handled the environment and the social media stuff,” Fallon said.
PHS is off until after Christmas then resumes with a road test at Harvest Prep (Ohio) on Dec. 27.
“We are never going to quit – that’s non-negotiable,” Wilson said. “Now we just have to figure how to not get buried. Our natural self, we are a pressing basketball team. It’s hard to press a full game when you only play seven kids.”
For South, the turnaround is quick. On Friday, the Patriots welcome in Spring Mills, who Fallon believes is one of the top five schools to ever visit the ROAC during his tenure.
“Spring Mills is loaded,” Fallon said. “They have a little bit of everything. They have guys who can score. They have big guys. They are as good as any team, like a Morgantown team or any teams we have brought in. We will have our hands full.”
Contact Kerry Patrick at kpatrick@newsandsentinel.com