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By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Managing Editor

One of the top players and one of the top coaches from Shelby County will head to Montgomery this summer to take part in the North-South All-Star basketball game during All-Star Sports Week July 17-22.

This year’s boys game will feature Helena rising senior Josh Williams, one of the county’s top players the last two years, while the girls game will feature Pelham girls head coach Crosby Morrison as one of the two coaches for the game.

The four 15-member teams comprised of 2024 rising seniors were announced by Brandon Dean, Director of the Alabama High School Athletic Directors & Coaches Association (AHSADCA) Wednesday.

The AHSADCA, which operates under the auspices of the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) will also host all-star games for baseball, softball, volleyball, boys and girls soccer, cross country, tennis and golf during the All-Star Week, July 17-22. Volleyball and Cross-Country teams have already been released.

A two-year starter for the Huskies, Williams has been one of the top-three scorers in Shelby County the last two years.

As a sophomore, he led the county in scoring with 18.9 points per game last season. This year, his point total went down by a point per game, but he did his part for the team.

Not only did he finish third in the county in points per game at 17.9, but he added 5.2 rebounds and two assists per game. More importantly, however, Williams led the Huskies to an area championship in both the regular season and the area tournament to cement a playoff spot this season.

He will return for his senior season as one of the top players in the county next year.

Williams will join a North team featuring players from Mountain Brook, Vestavia Hills, Pinson Valley and many others looking to pick up a win this summer.

As for Morrison, she has now won or shared the Coach of the Year award in Shelby County each of the last two seasons after a remarkable run with the Panthers.

Last year, she led Pelham to the Final Four in a special postseason run, and this year, she took the Panthers back to the Elite Eight for another memorable year.

She will join the coaching staff of the North team alongside Rogers coach Blake Prestage and Lauderdale County’s Brant Llewellyn.

The North won both games last summer. The North girls won 75-52 to improve to 22-3 in the annual series, and the North boys won 101-91 and now holds a 50-29 edge in the series.