Dylan Faulkner 2-time Region 7-5A POY
Calhoun big man named league’s best player for second consecutive year
For the second consecutive year, Calhoun senior post player Dylan Faulkner has been named the Region 7-5A basketball Player of the Year. And this year, he’s alone.
Last year, as a junior, the 6-foot-8 young man who is now headed to the University of Lipscomb to play college basketball, shared the 7-5A Player of the Year honors with senior teammate Peyton Law, who is now starring at Freed-Hardeman University and Freed-Hardeman won the MidSouth championship Saturday night with a 69-68 win over Georgetown College.
But this year with his superlative play and amazing statistics, he is the 7-5A MVP in a Class of One.
Faulkner was one of just two Calhoun players who were recognized by the 7-5A coaches with junior guard Daniel Streete receiving honorable mention.
While the season did not end or exactly go as the Yellow Jackets had hoped with five losses in their last seven games and a first-round playoff exit, Faulkner was, in a word, sensational.
He averaged 23 points and 16 rebounds a game and every team he faced tried to stop him, throwing a number of junk defenses at the Yellow Jackets that included doubles and triples teams, But nothing seemed to work as he had just five games with less than 20 points.
He also displayed a serious skill-set, looking like a guard with his ball-handling and driving ability and still looking like the inside force he is with all the blocked shots and dunks he had.
And the man who has been a threeyear starter for head coach Vince Layson leaves Calhoun as the program’s all-time leading scorer as well as leading rebounder and shot blocker.
In fact, Faulkner had just over 1,700 points and 1,100 rebounds during his time wearing the black-and-Vegas-gold.
This past season, Faulkner averaged 23.6 points and 15.8 rebounds a game while shooting 55 percent from the floor. He also had 4.1 blocked shots per game and was a 29 percent shooter from three-point range to lead the team in those four categories.
Faulkner had 637 total points this year, along with 426 rebounds, 62 assists, and 112 blocked shots.
Besides Faulkner, no other Calhoun player was named to the 7-5A first or second teams, both of which had just five players named to each.
Hiram had the most 7-5A All-Region players with two first-teamers while Dalton, Cass and Cartersville had one each. The Hornets would dominate the 7-5A second team with three of the five players named, meaning all five Hiram starters made the All-Region cut.
Hiram made the deepest playoff run of any of the four 7-5A teams that got into the postseason after the Hornets
defeated Calhoun in overtime in the Region championship game.
The Hornets, with the one seed, reached the Elite 8 before they lost to Jones County, 81-71, Tuesday night on the road. They blitzed Conyers Heritage, 88-45, to start the postseason and then topped Tri-Cities, 93-73 in the Sweet 16 Round before falling to Jones Tuesday night.
Last year, both Hiram and Calhoun made it to the 5A Final Four and both lost in the semifinals or they might have played for the fourth time in a season. The Hornets were also the Region tournament champs in 2022.
Senior guard Jay Boyd and junior guard Chase Taylor were the two Hiram players named first team this year along with Dalton senior big man Chaz Ramsey, Cartersville senior guard Romo
Pace, and Cass senior guard Jelani Hames.
Senior guard Aaron Wesley, along with junior guard Amir Taylor and junior forward Walter Matthew were three Hiram players voted onto the 7-5A All-Region second team along with Woodland guard Brelace Williams and Cass senior guard Kenneth Rogers.
Eight players received honorable mention with Streete, who is a two-year starter for the Yellow Jackets, being the only Calhoun selection.
Streete led Calhoun in assists and steals, finishing with 97 assists this season or an average of 3.6. He also had 36 steals or an average of 1.8 per outing.
Dalton, which lost in the second round of the playffs, and Woodland, which did not win a Region game, each had two of the eight players to receive honorable mention. Besides Calhoun, Hiram, Cartersville, and Cass each had one.