Milligan-bound Simmons helps team to two big wins

Jackson Simmons takes plenty of shots, and he's apparently been vaccinated for senioritis. The Unicoi County senior guard scored 35 points in a win against Chuckey-Doak on Tuesday and added 32 in a triumph against South Greene on Thursday. And in between, he signed to play basketball for Milligan University on Thursday afternoon. Simmons has had his eye on Milligan for essentially his entire record-setting high school career. He recently broke the Unicoi County career scoring record which had been held by Trevor Hensley, a Milligan alumnus. Simmons' coach, Brandon Broyles, attended Milligan, where he also coached under Tony Wallingford. And Simmons' coach at Unicoi County his first three seasons, his uncle Jordan Simmons, played at Milligan for Wallingford. "I've been pretty confident that's where I wanted to go, really, for a while," Simmons said. "I've been hearing from them, honestly, since about my freshman year." Simmons has been thoroughly impressed by Milligan coach Bill Robinson. "I really like Coach Robinson," Simmons said. "He said something that really stood out to me when we went on that visit. He was talking about how he doesn't want to focus on you as a basketball player, he wants to focus on you more as a person. That really stood out to me, because obviously, when you have a program that's focused more on building people and building personal connections instead of just cutthroat basketball – that means a lot." Of course, Simmons wants to win on the court, too. He mentioned Milligan's recent upset of No. 12 Pikeville. "I know it's a great school and a great program," Simmons said. "I'm excited and looking forward to it. Obviously, right now I'm focused on closing out this season and getting to where we want to go." The desired destination, of course, is the state tournament, and barring injury, the Blue Devils look like a good bet to make it to Murfreesboro. They improved to 6-0 in District 1-2A in dominant fashion. Unicoi County defeated the Black Knights, 88-52, and followed up with a 66-47 victory against South Greene. The Devils poured in 16 shots from 3-point range at Chuckey-Doak. Simmons made four treys, while freshman AJ Thomas (15 points) and junior Aidyn Evely (nine points) each made three 3-pointers. Senior Brady Simmons hit two treys en route to 10 points. Evely also pleased Coach Broyles on the defensive end of the court, as did Avery Hatcher and Carter Simmons. "Aidyn and Avery did a great job defensively," Broyles said, "and Carter was excellent inside, controlling (Ben) Polazzo and doing a great job on the boards. We held them to 24 points in the first half." The defense was again stingy in the win against South Greene. The Rebels scored 16 points in the first half while the Devils built a 15-point halftime lead. "We knew we were in for a battle," Broyles said. "They're a very good team and Coach (Terry) Hoese does a great job. We came out and played extremely hard. Even though they were bigger than us, we controlled the glass, which speaks to our kids' effort, toughness and desire to win. We weren't able to get the pace quite as fast as we wanted because of their zone and matchup, but we knew we had to shoot the ball well, and we did." Jackson Simmons hit three of the Blue Devils' 11 treys, as did Thomas, who finished with 14 points. Carter Simmons and Cade Peterson each made two 3-pointers and Brady Simmons made a trey during a seven-point outing. "Cade did a great job defensively on (Gavin) Dyer, holding him to single digits," Broyles said. "Carter and Brady also did an excellent job battling their post players, getting position and competing even though they were giving up size." South Greene got within 10 points in the fourth quarter. "And what made me most proud was how our kids responded," Broyles said. "After that run, we pushed the lead back out to 19. We had to overcome some adversity during the game, and seeing our team respond the way they did is a very positive sign for us." Unicoi County will remain in the district when it visits Johnson County on Tuesday and hosts West Greene on Friday. "Johnson County's always a tough place to play, and Coach (Ethan) Harmon does a great job with his team," Broyles said. "West Greene is currently second in the conference. They're big, have two very good post players and a guard who can really shoot it. It'll be a great challenge for us. "I'd really like to encourage our community to come out and support these kids. If you can make the trip to Mountain City on Tuesday, we'd love to have you there. And on Friday, pack the Den for West Greene and help us push for another big conference win." Broyles was also happy with Simmons' college choice. "I'm extremely proud of Jackson on his commitment to Milligan," he said. "As a former Buffalo, that program means a lot to me. Coach Robinson and their staff are getting a special player – someone who will make the Milligan community and the Unicoi County community proud. I'm excited to watch him wear the black and orange, and I expect him to do great things there." Jordan Simmons coached his nephew Jackson from age nine to 17. "It feels very fitting for him to get this opportunity," Jordan said. "What he has been able to accomplish in his first three and a half high school seasons is just unreal. Starting as a freshman on a state tournament team, earning a ton of accolades and breaking the school scoring record, all while spending those first three years in Class 3A in probably the toughest conference in Upper East Tennessee is incredible. I've been lucky enough to have a front row seat for the past nine years of his career, and it's hard to describe how proud I am of him." Jordan had a front-row seat for much of the behind-the-scenes drudgery, too. "Everyone sees the wild numbers he puts up in games, but for me, it's his commitment to the process that has amazed me," he said. "The 6 a.m. workouts, the three-hour drives on weekends to go play against the best competition, the weight room, the extra hours, the attention to detail, the consistency of his work ethic for those nine years is what makes him truly special. As a coach, as an uncle, as a fan, and as a Blue Devil, I feel very lucky to have gotten to witness what he's done and what he's worked himself into both on and off the court. I have zero doubt Milligan is getting a quality player and quality person who will leave his mark there much like he did here."