On December 15, 2017, in a game against Cedar Ridge High School, Chapel Hill High School senior point guard Elijah Haynes became the latest Tiger to score 1,000 points in his career. By achieving the feat, Haynes establishes himself as one of the best players to go through Chapel Hill High School. The last to reach the mark was 2012 grad, University of North Carolina-Charlotte and North Carolina-Wilmington standout, Denzel Ingram.
“It felt great,” Haynes said. “I saw the lane open up; I crossed over on the first defender; I saw the opening and went for the left-hand layup. On the outside, I didn’t really show it, and, on the inside, I was very happy for myself. I knew I hit it when Kahlil [Hill] gave me a high five and was like, ‘Hey, you did it! Congrats, bro!’ And I had friends in the crowd who were going crazy.”
Rodney Carter is in his second year as the head coach of the Tigers after coaching junior varsity for two years. Last year, Carter led Chapel Hill to the third round of the state playoffs and was named the Big Eight Conference coach of the year.
“It was good to see,” Carter said about Haynes’ accomplishment. “This senior class – they are very special to me because those are the kids that I started coaching here. It’s kind of like a father seeing your kids grow up.”
In his first year starting on varsity, as a sophomore, Haynes averaged 14.5 points per game (PPG) and was selected to the all-conference team. He followed up his junior year, tallying 16.9 PPG, 4.1 rebounds per game (RPG), 3.9 assists per game (APG) and was named to the all-conference team for the second straight year. So far, in his senior campaign, Haynes averages 15.7 PPG and 3.6 APG.
“All the extra work I put in after practice, getting shots up and in the weight room,” Haynes said. “I pushed myself to lift more and try to get my body up, and I pushed my teammates to do the same.”
“He’s a heck of a passer,” Carter said. “[He] brings good energy on defense and offense. He’s going to give you everything he has. He’s going to compete to his fullest every single night in.”
Haynes and Chapel Hill senior guard Max Connolly have been on the hardwood together since they were in middle school.
“Honestly, it’s just awesome. It’s a dream that every single player has: to reach their 1,000th point,” Connolly said. “I’m really proud of him. He’s put in so much work.”
Connolly and Haynes have been in the starting lineup together since they were sophomores.
“He is a completely different leader than he was back then. He’s a lot more assertive, a lot more accountable,” Connolly said.
On January 26, Haynes, Connolly and the Tigers hosted the Northwood Chargers in a Big Eight Conference matchup.
After a dominant first half, Northwood stretched its lead to 17 points early in the third quarter, but, Chapel Hill refused to give up and rose to the challenge, outscoring the Chargers 18-6 in the third quarter.
The game was tied with 40 seconds remaining and, after running 30 seconds off the clock, Northwood’s Deuce Powell weaved through the Tiger defense to put the Chargers up by two. Carter called time-out to stop the clock and game-plan with his team. With just seven and a half seconds left on the clock, Chapel Hill pushed the ball up the court to try to get a good look at the basket.
Near the midcourt line, with five and a half seconds to go, Hill hit Haynes in stride with a crisp chest pass. Haynes collected himself and stumbled past a Northwood defender but kept his balance. He then split two defenders with a quick crossover, staying low to the ground, and took off into the lane with only one Charger left in front of him. Rising up as he attempted a lay-up, a Charger was called for a blocking foul, sending Haynes to the line… with the game on the line.
Down by two with 1.3 seconds on the clock, Haynes needed to make both free throws to tie the game. He took a breath, spun the ball in his left hand and calmly knocked down the first. Then, just as one would do in football before a big kick, Northwood called a timeout to try to ice Haynes.
But it was the ice in Haynes’ veins that came out on top. With Carter too nervous to watch, Haynes hit nothing but nylon on the second attempt. Northwood’s last second heave just rimmed out, sending the game into an extra four-minute period.
The Tigers rode the momentum into overtime as junior Ben Gaynes knocked down a corner three to give the Tigers the lead. Chapel Hill never looked back. Junior David Elien brought the house down with a thunderous two-handed transition dunk to increase the Tigers’ lead.
Fittingly, Haynes closed the game out on the free-throw line to secure the Tigers’ 65–57 victory. Chapel Hill improved its conference record to 8–1 with Haynes’ 19 points and four rebounds.
