Hines Furniture Athlete of the Week: Sumter High's Croskey carries Lady Gamecocks back to state title game

Every coach wants his or her best players to step up under the brightest lights.

On Friday night, Sumter High's Kiara Croskey did just that.

As the No. 1 Lady Gamecocks faced Summerville for the SCHSL 5A lower state championship, offense was at a premium. Croskey scored half of Sumter High's points in a 35-27 win while locking up the top Green Wave player on the other side of the ball. On top of earning a trip back to the state title game for the first time since her freshman season, Croskey was able to earn recognition as the Hines Furniture Athlete of the Week.

"Seeing all the votes come in for me means a lot," Croskey said of the support from the Lady Gamecock family. "They're supporting me no matter what."

SHS head coach Jeff Schaffer expected an all-star performance from the reigning SCBCA 5A player of the year, and that's exactly what he got on Friday.

"I've been talking to her about that since she was in eighth grade. I said at some point in time she's going to have to take over this team and roll with it. She's finally starting to realize that a little bit," Schaffer said. "She really kinda put us on her back in that game at times. You expect seniors to step up like that; they've been there before. She's played in a state championship game, she's played in an upper state championship game, three lower state championships. With her in the fold, five of those are at least lower state, and we've been undefeated at home since 2020. That's pretty daggum good."

Croskey and the Lady Gamecocks went into the matchup with a chip on their shoulder. She remembers the last time she played for the lower state championship, which ended in a loss to Summerville on the same court at the Florence Center in 2022. She wanted to avoid a repeat of history.

That wasn't going to come easily. The court at the Florence Center provides some unique challenges with the portable baskets standing alone in front of an empty void. Sumter High hit just two threes in the game as a result, one of which came from Croskey early in the second half to provide a critical sigh of relief.

But when shots don't fall, you have to adjust. Croskey did the bulk of her damage by driving to the basket and getting creative with how she volleyed floaters over tall defenders. Maybe most importantly, she drew fouls. That proved to be critical, as three Summerville players fouled out in the win. Croskey was also a perfect 5-5 from the free-throw line.

"I wanted to just attack their players and get them in foul trouble early because we knew we don't have a lot of bodies, so we had to get them out before they get us out," Croskey said.

Croskey's 18 points made a massive difference in the win, but so did her defense against Summerville star Molly Daugherty. The Green Wave standout knocked down two threes in the opening half, but Croskey was able to lock her up after that. Daugherty went into the half with 12 points and failed to score after the break. A critical swing came when Croskey was able to draw two charges against the much taller Daugherty, which eventually sent the Green Wave's leading scorer to the bench with five fouls.

"At halftime it was 15-14 and they had 12 of their points, so it was just a one-man show. Just trying to stop her because she was the only one scoring," Croskey said of her mentality. "Just playing hard-nosed defense and just locking her up.

"Watching film, people that she'd played against hadn't been pushing up against her on defense. I felt like I could use that to my advantage knowing I didn't have many fouls and just seeing how the refs were calling it at the time."

Schaffer credits Croskey's basketball IQ to be able to make the smaller plays, like drawing charges against a player in foul trouble, as a defining factor that separates her from other players.

"Her knowledge of the game is beyond anyone I've ever coached in high school," the SHS head coach said. "She just gets it, and that makes it so much easier for me because I can leave some of the coaching up to her on the floor.

"The amazing thing (about her defensive performance) is that she's undersized to be guarding the people I've been putting her on. It just amazes me with what she can do. She's fearless. For someone coming off a knee injury like she faced last year and to be able to take those charges, take those hits and play against bigger girls speaks volumes on her tenacity and how she wants to finish her career here at Sumter High."

Croskey was glad to be able to finally get a win in the Florence Center after going 0-2 in each of the last two seasons. It's even more important this year, as the Lady Gamecocks will be back in Florence for the state championship on Friday at 6 p.m. against Rock Hill. She has one more win she needs to get before graduating later this spring.

"It means a lot. It's always been difficult for us to play in the Florence Center. Just having that one under our belts, knowing we can go into the next game with that momentum and confidence," Croskey said. "We just have to take it up a notch."