Staff photo.
Vestavia's Luke Couch (1) is shown in a game last season. His commitment to defense has aided him in becoming a solid all-around player for the Rebels.
Vestavia Hills High School boys basketball head coach Patrick Davis remembers the moment it clicked for Luke Couch.
In an individual meeting with his coach following his sophomore season, Couch sat across from Davis and soaked in the words.
“You have the ability to put us over the top of being really, really good, if you’ll be 100 percent bought into what we’re doing and defend and all that,” Davis told the guard.
Couch took a few moments to absorb the message and responded, “I got you.”
That set into motion Couch’s maturation and improvement over the last couple seasons. Now as a senior, Couch finds himself as the VHHS boys basketball team’s leading scorer and lockdown defender. Through December, Couch was averaging more than 16 points per game and shooting a lethal 40 percent from 3-point range.
Davis also a remembers a conversation he had with Paul Michael Hargrove around the same time as the pivotal one with Couch. But this one went the opposite direction of most when discussing a player’s perception of himself.
“I told him you have no clue how good you are and can be,” Davis said.
Now, Hargrove is a 6-foot-8 senior, leading the Rebels in rebounding at just over six boards per game, while averaging 12 points per contest.
The inside-out duo is part of an eight-man senior class for the Rebels. They are attempting to help lead the charge both on and off the court, with hopes of recapturing the magic of two seasons ago when the Rebels advanced to the Class 7A Final Four.
“We’re learning as we continue this year and we’ve got some major things we’ve got to focus on,” Hargrove said of the team’s progression. “Once we manage to hit those, then we can be a good team.”
Couch has become an excellent two-way player. His shooting precision from deep makes him tough for opposing defenses to cover, but Davis said he’s also a player that shines the brightest when the stakes are the highest.
“He’s one of those that never shies away from the moment,” Davis said. “The bigger the stage, the more he embraces it. It can’t be too big for him.”
But as good as Couch has been offensively this season, it’s his defense — and his desire to excel at it — that has impressed the most.
It’s been a process for Couch to become an elite defender, Davis said, but it’s now what Couch takes the most pride in as a player.
“That’s the best feeling,” Couch said.
While Couch hopes to play college basketball, Hargrove knows this is his last season as a player.
“It definitely makes you want to finish it the right way,” Hargrove said. “I know this will be the last opportunity, so I want to go out there and make the most of it.”
The senior class as a whole is aiming to go out on the right foot.
“I hope we keep pushing everybody in the right direction,” Couch said. “It started with the grade above us and the grade above them. Just following their footsteps, keep it going in the right direction, and making an example for the younger teams.”
