The Shadow
Michael Hunter jumped at the chance.
Over the weekend, the second-year Christiansburg boys basketball coach will show the Blue Demons his old stomping grounds.
Christiansburg is joining host Alleghany, Covington and James Monroe, W.Va., in the inaugural Mountaineer Invitational Tournament (MIT) Friday and Saturday.
“I’ve been talking to my kids about it for a long time,” said Hunter, a 1993 graduate of AHS. “I’m excited to bring my team to Alleghany. Good people and a good environment — I love for my kids to see that.”
Hunter was a standout on the basketball court at Alleghany and went on to play at Ferrum College.
He had a three-year stint as the girls basketball coach at Eastern Montgomery High School and is in his second year at Christiansburg.
“My mom and dad are still up there and they travel to most of my games,” Hunter said. “It’s great for them to see us up there at Alleghany.”
The Blue Demons roster includes sophomore M.J. Hunter, Michael’s son.
Christiansburg is 3-2 on the season, including a 46-41 win over Pulaski County Tuesday night.
Hunter’s group is led by Issac Hayden, who scored 19 in the Tuesday win and leads the team in scoring.
When Alleghany coach Nolan Caldwell was working on plans to organize a tournament, he reached out early to Hunter.
“When Mike took over at Christiansburg, I ran the idea by him about getting him back in the area,” said Caldwell. “I thought it would be a lot of fun bringing him back. He was all for it. We’re excited to get Mike back in this gym.”
The Blue Demons will square off with Covington in Friday’s 6 p.m., opening semifinal.
The Cougars (1-4) have dropped four straight against a tough schedule after opening the season with a win over James River.
Friday’s nightcap will pit the host Mountaineers (2-1) against James Monroe, W.Va. (1-0).
Alleghany has won home and home contests against Covington after losing a one-point season opener to Rockbridge County.
The Mavericks, who feature 6-foot-10 senior McKinley Mann, opened their season with a 73-62 win at Covington on Tuesday. Mann put up 33 points in the game.
The tournament consolation and championship games are scheduled for Saturday night beginning at 6 p.m.
Admission is $6 per night for the tournament with all children 12 and under admitted free of charge.
“Ever since we lost the Rotary tournament, we had been talking to (former AHS athletic director) Ty Dobbs about trying to host something,” said Caldwell. “We tried a couple of years ago and we didn’t get enough teams. We were able to get the teams this year and we are really looking forward to it. It will be two fun nights of basketball.”
Mountaineer Invitational
Basketball Tournament
Hosted By – Alleghany High School
Friday
6 p.m. – Covington vs. Christiansburg
7:45 – Alleghany vs. James Monroe
Saturday
6 p.m. – Consolation Game
7:45 – Championship Game
