Photo by Erin Nelson.
Vestavia HIlls’ Sarah Gordon (33) shoots the ball guarded by Bob Jones’ Alana Obianozie (22) in a Northwest Regional semifinal game at Tom Drake Coliseum at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville on Feb. 16.
The Vestavia Hills High School basketball teams had hoped for better finishes to the 2022-23 campaign, but a few players have been recognized for their outstanding seasons.
On the boys’ side, guard Win Miller was named to the Class 7A all-state first team, as compiled by the Alabama Sports Writers Association. The 6-foot-3 guard was also one of three finalists for 7A Player of the Year, along with Central-Phenix City’s Jacoby Hill and Baker’s Labaron Philon.
Those three were named first team players, along with Hoover’s DeWayne Brown and Spain Park’s Sam Wright.
Miller wrapped up his career with 2,011 points, finishing as Vestavia’s all-time leading scorer in program history. The Belmont University signee had 21.6 points per game for the season for the Rebels, as they went 26-5 and advanced to the Northwest Regional final. Vestavia Hills won 25-plus games for the third straight season.
“Nobody thought we were going to be here,” Miller said following the regional tournament. “We were counted out by everybody, but we were one of the best teams in the state throughout the year.”
For the girls, Sarah Gordon was named to the second team, while Anna Towry made the third team. They led a Lady Rebels squad that made it to the regional final and finished with a 28-5 record.
Gordon led the team with 17 points per game, adding 5.8 rebounds a game as well. The sophomore guard has obtained an offer from UAB and is nearing 1,000 points for her high school career.
Towry, a multi-sport athlete at Vestavia, finished her basketball career by eclipsing 1,000 points. She averaged 13.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.
Towry was Vestavia’s only senior and said the future is bright for the Lady Rebels.
“We had a really strong season and won a lot of games we weren’t supposed to win and did it with a very young team,” she said.
