Stanback to play in East-West All-Star game

ASHEBORO — There have been some very impressive boys basketball players at Asheboro High School over the past 24 years. Solid, steady players who worked very well within the system the Blue Comets run.

But over the past two years, one player has elevated his game to such a high level, he has to be included in the conversation of the most talented players to ever don an AHS jersey.

Jerquarius Stanback, who has already been named the Randolph Hub Player of the Year, a two-time Mid-Piedmont Conference Player of the Year and the NCCBA District Player of the Year, added another prestigious honor as he was selected to compete in the NCCA East-West All-Star Basketball Game. The contest will be held July 15 at the Greensboro Coliseum.   

“I’ve kind of had what I call good high school athletes who work hard, but he is the first of his level I have had since I’ve been here,” said 18th-year AHS boys basketball coach Brian Nance, who has coached 28 years in all. “I think this shows when you put the time and the effort into it, you have a chance to obtain individual awards as well as team awards.”

Stanback is the first AHS boys player to participate in the East-West basketball game since Derek McKee in 1999. Last year, Eastern Randolph’s Brecken Snotherly and Randleman’s Gracyn Hall participated in the girls game. There have also been numerous football and soccer student-athletes from the county to earn the honor. 

“It really surprised me how far I have come,” said Stanback, who said he has recovered from a nasty fall he took in the first-round playoff game this season, which forced him to miss the second-round game.  

Stanback, who is headed to Appalachian State in the fall, showed continued growth throughout his three years on the varsity basketball team, both literally and figuratively. As his frame grew to 6-foot-7, his athleticism skyrocketed as his leaping ability and touch around the rim made it near impossible for teams to stop. His play in the defensive end was just as impressive as he would block shots from corner to corner and from the 3-point shot line in.

“When he started out as a sophomore, he was in the back of some guys and now he’s leading the team,” Nance said. “We had some young players this year and he’s taken them under his wing. He’s really come out of his shell. He’s been fun to watch develop over the last three years”

Stanback averaged 24.6 points per game, 11.3 rebounds and an impressive 4.6 blocks per contest. He led the Blue Comets to a 23-4 overall mark, a mark that included capturing the Mid-Piedmont Athletic Conference Tournament championship after beating Central Davidson in the finals, avenging the only MPC losses suffered all season. 

Stanback has some high goals for this fall.

“I want to work my way into the rotation and if I can do that, win some kind of freshman award,” Stanback said. “I’m pretty excited.”