The GOAT: Hoover’s Kelly Earns All-OTM Girls Player of the Year Honor Again

1 year ago 51

By Rubin E. Grant

Reniya Kelly was sitting next to Hoover girls basketball coach Krystle Johnson when Johnson proclaimed her the GOAT of the Lady Bucs.

“She’s the best player in Hoover High School history,” Johnson said. “She’s the best basketball player in the state and has been for the last three years.”

Johnson made her pronouncement during the post-game media session after the 5-foot-8 senior guard had just led Hoover to its third consecutive Class 7A state championship and the fourth of Kelly’s career.

Kelly scored 25 points, collected six rebounds and made three steals to earn MVP honors, leading Hoover to a 55-44 victory against Sparkman in the championship game at BJCC’s Legacy Arena.

A week later, Kelly added an exclamation point to Johnson’s declaration. She scored 23 points, grabbed eight rebounds and handed out five assists to lead Alabama to an 88-74 victory in the Alabama-Mississippi Girls Classic at the Mitchell Center on the campus of the University of South Alabama. She was named the Alabama All-Stars MVP.

Kelly handled her coach’s assessment of her being the GOAT just as smoothly as she does one of her pull-up jumpers off a cross-over dribble.

“I believe her,” Kelly said. “I’ve had a lot of success in this program to verify it. I’m very confident in myself and I think the work I’ve put in shows I’m the greatest.”

Over the Mountain basketball coaches didn’t dispute that, making Kelly the unanimous choice as the 2023 OTM Girls Basketball Player of the Year. It’s the second consecutive year she’s been chosen for the honor.

“I’m blessed,” Kelly said. “I think it shows the consistency I’ve had for five years.”

Johnson had little to add.

“There’s not much more for me to say,” Johnson said. “Her resume speaks for itself.”

Kelly, a North Carolina signee, averaged 15.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.4 steals this season. She also became Hoover’s all-time leading scorer, finishing with 2,272 career points. In her five seasons on the varsity, Hoover posted a 168-10 record.

Kelly also has been named the Gatorade 2023 Alabama Girls Basketball Player of the Year.

“Reniya is elite,” Vestavia Hills coach John Smelser said in a Gatorade press release. “She is looking to create for teammates, but she is also capable of getting a bucket whenever she wants. It is no fun trying to gameplan to stop her because she can do so much more than score.”

Kelly was one of four Hoover players voted to the 2023 All-OTM team, joining senior forwards Kristen McMillian (6.8 average points per game and 5.5 rebounds) and Alanah Pooler (7.5 points, 4.1 rebounds), and senior guard Layla Etchison (12.5 points).

Vestavia Hills landed three players on the team, sophomore forward Sarah Gordon (17.0 points, 5.8 rebounds), sophomore guard Jill Gaylard (7.4 points, 2.9 assists) and senior guard Anna Lowry (13.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists).

Rounding out the team are Oak Mountain junior guard Raegan Whitaker (18.0 points, 9.8 rebounds), Mountain Brook junior guard Emma Stearns (10.1 points), Homewood junior guard Kayla Warren (9.0 points) and Briarwood junior guard Mary Beth Dicen (7.6 points, 3.5 assists).

Coach of the Year

Johnson was voted 2023 Coach of the Year after leading Hoover to a 35-1 record and the three-peat. She also surpassed 300 victories for her coaching career.

“I’m shocked,” Johnson said. “I don’t think I’ve won it but once before. Because we’re Hoover and we have a lot of talent, people assume that we’re going to win and don’t give us credit for keeping our program at the top.

“Me and my coaching staff work day in and day out to help our players be successful not just on the court but off. It’s a collaboration. I get the awards, but everybody plays a part, including the players.”

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