BLACKSVILLE — There just might be a ticket charge for the next Ammons family reunion.
It won’t be for the pulled pork, baked beans, or coleslaw. Instead, it will be for the likely game of pick-up basketball.
With four members of the Ammons family excelling on the girls’ basketball hardwood, it wouldn’t be that big of a stretch to see a friendly game break out at the next family gathering.
Especially with shooters like Clay-Battelle’s Alivia “Liv” Ammons who recently became the school’s all-time leading scorer.
“I always had it in my mind,” the senior guard said. “My first goal was to get my 1,000th point, then it changed to being the all-time leading scorer.”
Ammons recorded her 1,000th point last season and just this past week she broke the school record with a jump shot from the elbow against Hundred.
She’s not the first Ammons family member to hold the Cee-Bees top spot. Her cousin, Abbey Ammons, held the career mark with 1,390. Her other cousin, Whitney Ammons, is also a member of the C-B 1,000-point club and another cousin, Kaitlyn Ammons, played for Morgantown High and is currently playing for DePaul University.
“All of my cousins played, it seems like there is always a basketball being shot wherever we go,” Liv Ammons said. “I knew I was close (before the game at Hundred) but I didn’t know exactly how many points I needed.”
Her coach, long-time mentor David Joyce, did and even called a timeout during the contest to acknowledge the record being broke. Ammons’ parents, Dave and Jess also had a good idea when the record might fall.
“I told her mom before the game, that I would call a timeout if we were comfortably ahead,” Joyce said. “It was worth it.”
Behind all those points is tons of hard work and countless hours of shooting from Ammons. She said that not every night is a good shooting night, but she also has the common shooter’s mentality of keep shooting until she is hitting her shot.
Joyce said there have been plenty of times during Ammons’ four years on the C-B varsity that he has said “no, no, no” only to watch a shot fall.
“Liv got thrown into being the point guard for us a couple years ago,” Joyce said. “That was never really her role, but she has really excelled with it. A lot of her points come from the foul line, from driving and attacking. She can really light it up on any given night.”
That’s not to say that Ammons can’t knocked down shots from long distance. In a recent loss to Trinity Christian, she finished with 33 points on 10-of-10 shooting with six 3-pointers and a 4-of-4 performance from the foul line.
Joyce said this is the sixth 1,000th point scorer for the C-B girls’ basketball program and he has coached all six during his 17 years on the Cee-Bee bench.
As the main scorer for a Clay-Battelle team that finished the regular season with a 10-9 record, Ammons has faced plenty of double teams and gimmick defenses. However, when her shot is falling there isn’t much opposing teams can do.
“I’ve always been a decent shooter,” Ammons said. “I do have my off nights. But it’s not all about shooting, it’s about defense and positioning and making your teammates better. When I am on, I feel pretty confident, I feel like I am even more open — even if I am not.”
By ERIC HERTER
