Travontae Powell, left, and TyJuan Smith signed basketball scholarships with Southwest Tennessee Community College today. Also pictured are, from left, Kaleb Estes, assistant coach; Charles Powell, Travontae's father; Vaneshia Leavy, Travontae's mother; Charmin Smith, TyJuan's mother; and Charles Mitchell, CHS head coach. Photo by Jeff Ireland
Three Class of 2020 Covington Chargers will be playing basketball in college next season.
Brandon Alston signed with Mississippi Delta Community College in April and two of his teammates, TyJuan Smith and Travontae Powell, signed with Southwest Tennessee Community College in Memphis earlier this morning in the Covington High School library.
All three players were key reasons why Covington went 28-6 last season, won the district title and finished one win short of the Class AA state tournament.
Powell, a lightning-quick point guard who can shoot with either hand, said being able to continue playing with one of his teammates was very appealing.
“They definitely wanted both of us,” he said.
Powell led the team in scoring (19) and assists (5) per game last season.
“He had so many looks from so many different colleges,” Covington head coach Charles Mitchell said. “We thought junior college was the best route for him to get himself together, get stronger, learn the game and get more mature … He’s offensively brilliant.”
At 6-4, 220 pounds, Smith looks like a defensive end, but he’s very agile for his size. He averaged 15 points per game last season and led the team in rebounding at nine per game.
“He’s tough, he’s going to defend, he’s going to rebound and he led our team in charges,” Mitchell said. “He’s your old-school-type player. He’s going to give it all out there.”
Smith made it a point to thank Mitchell during the signing ceremony, which included about a dozen friends, coaches and family members.
“Coach always made us work hard and put in a lot of work with us. He was definitely a big reason why we’re here.”
