The hype around the 2024-25 men’s college basketball season is heating up as the first official games approach, and this time there won’t just be one former Chatham County basketball star making national headlines — there will be two.
Ahead of the start of their respective seasons at Alabama and UNC, former Seaforth standout and Gatorade Player of the Year Jarin Stevenson and former Northwood star and McDonald’s All-American Drake Powell gave an early glimpse of what’s to come from the two in their teams’ preseason exhibition games this month.
Powell had plenty of chances to preview his much-anticipated impact at UNC as the Tar Heels played in three exhibition games leading up to the season. Most recently, UNC played Johnson C. Smith at the Smith Center in Chapel Hill Sunday, routing the Golden Bulls 127-63.
In the blowout win, Powell put his playmaking and defensive skills on display. Although he struggled from the three-point line (0-3 from three), he made up for it with a team-high two blocks, a steal, four assists (second-highest, behind Elliot Cadeau’s eight assists), nine rebounds (second-highest behind Ven-Allen Lubin’s 12 rebounds) and eight points (4-8 from the floor).
But as much as his ability to be impactful in multiple ways showed up on the court, the biggest takeaway about Powell’s performance Sunday was his athleticism. In the middle of the first half, Powell, guarding the ball handler, went under a screen and recovered to block his assignment’s shot attempt. Guarding the ball again later on in the period, Powell came away with an on-ball steal and finished the play with a dunk on the other end.
Of course, there were his biggest highlights of the day that came in the second half: the dunk from an Ian Jackson lob in transition and the chase down block in which Powell pinned a layup on the backboard with two hands.
In UNC’s exhibition game against Memphis on Oct. 15, Powell didn’t play as well offensively as he only came away with two points and two rebounds in 25 minutes, but he still came away with two steals and a block. Powell also scored eight points on a 4-8 shooting clip in the Blue-White scrimmage on Oct. 12, giving UNC fans a preview of his defensive ability with a two-handed block on Lubin at the rim.
Stevenson displayed an elite defensive presence in Alabama’s 96-88 exhibition win against Memphis Monday, too. The 6-foot-11 forward also pinned a layup attempt on the backboard in the first half, and numerous times throughout the game, Stevenson displayed the ability to stay in front of quicker guards and force them into tough shots. He finished the game with two blocks.
Offensively, he looked to get his three-point shot to fall. Stevenson took six threes (all of his FG attempts) and made two of them in an 11-point performance, including a big three with six minutes left in the second half that stopped a seven-minute field goal drought from Alabama. However, he left points at the free throw line, going 5-10 from the stripe.
In the Crimson Tide’s 98-77 win over Wake Forest on Oct. 18, Stevenson started and poured in 10 points and a team-high six rebounds (tied with Clifford Omoruyi). Playing in Alabama’s high-paced system, Stevenson once again looked comfortable with taking a high number of threes as eight of his 10 shot attempts were from beyond the arc. He only shot 30% from the field, but once again, his defensive efforts looked to overshadow that. Stevenson came away with a block and a steal, and on one play, he cut off a driving Hunter Sallis, contested the shot, grabbed the miss and pushed the ball down the court for a three in transition.
For Stevenson and the Crimson Tide, the regular season will begin at home against UNC Asheville Monday at 8 p.m. The Tar Heels will begin their season at home against Elon Monday at 9 p.m.