Trio of Augusta-area players making college basketball impact

For the Love of the Game by Ashley ‘A.B.’ Brown The Augusta area has become a basketball hotbed in recent years. Westside, Cross Creek, Augusta Christian, and Grovetown have combined to win eight state titles in just the last four seasons, including each earning the state title in their respective classification in 2021-22. College coaches have been flocking to Augusta-area gyms to check out the talent for decades, but the number of college players the area is producing is currently at an all-time high. I love following our area players as they move on to the college level. The trio below has certainly earned some recognition for the way they have been playing this season. R.J. Felton (6’3” Senior Guard - East Carolina) Felton played his prep ball at North Augusta as a freshman and sophomore and had already garnered attention from college coaches before transferring to Aiken High School for his last two seasons. He had more than a dozen scholarship offers and chose to sign with East Carolina. During his time in Greensboro, Felton has blossomed into a star. Last season he led the Pirates in scoring, averaging 17.3 points per game. He also become the first ECU player in 34 years to post back-to-back 30-point games and eclipsed 1000 points for his collegiate career. This season he has been just as good. Through 13 games, Felton is averaging 17.5 points and 6.4 rebounds, while shooting 83% from the free throw line. He scored 19 or more points in the Pirates’ first seven games, which included a 27-point, eight rebound game versus George Mason in mid-November. Felton will play pro ball - likely overseas - but first he will try and take the Pirates to the NCAA Tournament. Kobe Stewart (6’7” Senior Guard/Forward - Presbyterian) Steward is an excellent case study in perseverance. Don’t get me wrong, Stewart oozed talent during a successful prep career at Cross Creek. He also comes from excellent bloodlines. His father, Rod, was a standout point guard for Butler in the late 1980s. Stewart arrived at Presbyterian as a lanky 6’5” kid that played sparingly. He has developed into a 6’7” man and the top player for the Blue Hose. This season he is averaging 14.5 points per game with 4.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists. All you must do is review Stewart’s scoring averages by season to see this young man has put in the work. His averages have increased each year - from 1.7 per game, to 5.3, to 7.0, to 8.2, to, finally, this season’s impressive total. He scored 26 points with ten rebounds in a 71-68 win over Wofford early this season and has a great chance to be a First Team All-Conference performer. Demarco Middleton (6’2” Freshman Point Guard - USC-Salkehatchie) Augusta has had some incredible guards over the years. Gerald White (ARC/Auburn), Michael Stokes (Josey/Georgia Southern), Ricky Moore (Westside/UConn), William Avery (Westside/Duke/NBA), and Vonteego Cummings (Thomson/Pittsburgh/NBA) just to name a few. However, Middleton has more state Championships than all of them. That’s right, Middleton led Westside to three consecutive state titles during his incredible prep career. This season, Middleton is a freshman at the junior college level, playing at USC-Salkehatchie, and the Floor General has continued his stellar play. In the first eight college games of his career, Middleton is averaging 17.4 points, 4.1 assists and 3.9 rebounds and his squad has a 9-3 record. Recently he erupted for 33 points, shooting 12/16 from the floor and 8/10 from the free throw line. What is most impressive is the fact that he is shooting 60% from the field. Middleton is running a high-octane offense that is averaging 120.3 points a game. He will undoubtedly get an opportunity to jump to Division I after his time at Salkehatchie.