Nathan Pendergrass and Dexter Peterson (week 8)

Temple JV coach Robert Hetrick couldn’t go with just one player this week. So he picked two.

    “I could’ve picked the whole team, really,” Hetrick said. “Everybody played great in out win over CSAS. But I thought Georgia (Nathan Pendergrass) and Dexter Petersen really stood out.”

    Pendergrass, who scored a game-high 19 points including four 3-pointers, and Petersen, who provided steady pressure on the ball throughout the game, share Player of the Week honors for this week.

    “Nathan shot it really well. . . he’s been our most consistent scorer all season,” Hetrick said. “And I thought Dexter did a great job defensively. He really spearheaded our defense.”

    Temple held CSAS scoreless in the first quarter while building a 17-0 lead. The Patriots managed just six points in the first half as the Crusaders built a 24-6 halftime lead.

   “And Dexter was a big part of that,” Hetrick said. “He was terrific on defense. He got some help from everybody else. . . T.J. Butts being one of those. . . but he stood out. He did a great job of pressuring the ball out front.”

    Pendergrass, a junior, is in his first year at Temple. Meanwhile, Petersen, a sophomore, has been at Temple since grade school.

    “Both of those guys are great kids,” Hetrick said. “They’re both very coachable.”

Nathan Rector (week 7)

Nathan Rector has logged a lot of minutes this year between football and bouncing back and forth between the junior varsity and varsity basketball teams.

    All that wear and tear has taken an emotional and physical toll on his body, but he just keeps going and going.

    Rector, a freshman post, averaged 14 points in helping lead Temple’s junior varsity team to a pair of narrow wins this week – earning himself Player of the Week honors. He scored eight points in a thrilling 42-41 comeback win at McCallie and then pumped in a career-high 20 points in a 49-45 victory over Silverdale. His efforts helped the Crusaders improve to 10-5 overall and 4-2 in District 5-A.

    Against Silverdale, Rector, who is known for his tireless work ethic and relentless hustle, outplayed Silverdale’s big man down low for the second time this year – scoring on an array of layups.

    “Nathan is the heartbeat of our team,” Temple JV coach Robert Hetrick said. “He’s a coach’s dream.”

Dexter Petersen (week 6)

Temple’s junior varsity basketball team played just one game this week, but Dexter Petersen made the most of the opportunity.

    The junior combo guard played a major role down the stretch at Copper Basin, helping Temple overcome a sluggish outing to post a come-from-behind 35-28 road victory.

    Petersen, the younger brother of Kendell Petersen (a starter on the varsity team) scored seven points, including a clutch 3-pointer and a long 2-pointer in the final quarter to help Temple overcome a two-point deficit. The Crusaders scored the final nine points of the game to seal the victory and move to 8-5 overall and 3-2 in District 5-A.

    “We were really struggling offensively throughout the game, and Dexter stepped up and made some big shots in the second half to help get us over the hump,” Temple JV coach Robert Hetrick said. “I don’t know if we would’ve won that game if it hadn’t been for Dexter.

    “He’s been a good player for us all season,” Hetrick said. “He’s one of those kids who is very coachable. He does anything we ask him to do. He could probably score more if he wanted to, but that’s not important to him. He likes to win.”

John Hutchins (week 5)

Jon Hutchins has proven to be a valuable asset to Temple’s junior varsity program. That was evident again this week as Hutchins continued to contribute in many different areas, especially in the hustle category.

     In addition, Hutchins, a freshman post, scored a career-high six points in Temple’s victory over McCallie – helping him earn Player of the Week honors.

     “He’s improved so much,” Temple JV coach Robert Hetrick said. “He plays so hard, and he knows what we’re trying to do. That’s why he’s such a pleasure to coach and why he’s one of our most popular players.”

Chris Rice (week 4)

Chris Rice continues to put up impressive numbers for Temple’s junior varsity team.

     Rice earned Player of the Week honors after averaging 17.5 points per game in helping the Crusaders win two of three games.

     Rice had 15 points in a win over Copper Basin, 24 in a loss to Ooltewah and 13 in a win at Silverdale. The guard hit 11 3-pointers over that span.
     “Chris has been a good leader for this team,” Temple JV coach Robert Hetrick said. “When the going gets tough, this team looks to Chris and he settles us down. Everybody looks at all the 3-pointers he hits, but he does so many other things to help this team win.”

Nathan Rector (week 3)

Temple’s junior varsity team won all three games this past week. One of the main reasons why was the play of Nathan Rector.

     Rector averaged 11 points per game in those three games while also crashing the boards and playing tight defense. The freshman forward scored 8 points in a 51-30 win over Lookout Valley, 12 points in a 59-43 victory over CSAS and 13 points in a 62-35 win over McCallie.

     After struggling from the free throw against Lookout Valley, Rector rectified the problem, connecting on 9 of 9 free throws in the wins over CSAS and McCallie.

     “Nathan is a just a leader,” Temple JV coach Robert Hetrick said. “And he plays so hard all the time. He was so upset with himself over missing those free throws, he stayed after practice and worked on them. And that work paid off.”

Nathan Pendergrass (week 2)

Nathan Pendergrass turned out to be a nice addition in football.

     The same can be said in basketball.

     The junior, who has picked up numerous nicknames since arriving at Temple this fall, averaged 17 points in the Crusaders’ two JV games this past week, earning him Player of the Week honors.

      Pendergrass pumped in a team-high 25 points in Tuesday’s 77-49 home loss to 21st Century and followed that performance with 8 points (including 3 big free throws in the fourth quarter) in Thursday’s 50-43 victory at McCallie.

      “Nathan really adds a lot to our team,” Temple JV coach Robert Hetrick said. “He’s got an old-school game with all those spin dribbles and head fakes. And he’s not a bad shooter. I like Nathan because he plays hard. He gives you everything he has when he’s out on the floor.”

     The nicknames? Georgia (because he’s from Georgia); Bird (for Larry Bird); French Lick (Bird’s hometown in Indiana); and last but not least The White Hole (jokingly for his propensity to shoot most times he touches the ball).

     “I think he got that one after that 25-point game,” Hetrick said with a chuckle