By WESLEY HALLMAN / Sports Editor

Calera High School junior Deondre Haynes and Montevallo High School senior Amber Cardwell already share a few things in common.

Haynes and Cardwell have been the best players on their respective high school basketball teams the past two seasons.

The duo resides in southern Shelby County basketball hotbeds. Each sharpened their skills on neighborhood courts against players much older with higher skill levels.

Haynes and Cardwell can add one more shared honor before they move on to their collegiate careers – 2010-2011 Shelby County Reporter Player of the Year.

Haynes is the boys’ basketball Player of the Year after leading the Eagles to a 23-9 record and an appearance in the Alabama High School Athletic Association Class 4A Central Region championship game.

Haynes, a point guard, did a little bit of everything for his team, which is evidenced by his per-game averages of 23.5 points, 3.1 rebounds and 4.6 assists. Haynes’ scoring average led all Shelby County players.

Haynes, who already holds scholarship offers from Georgia and UAB, is next in a long line of talented players from Calera.

Haynes wrapped up his junior season by earning a spot in the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s North-South all-star basketball game in Montgomery in July.

Cardwell earned the nod as the girls’ basketball Player of the Year for a second-consecutive year after leading Montevallo (15-11) to the AHSAA Class 3A sub-region playoffs.

Cardwell and her teammates were unable to get past Sumter County for the second year in a row, but the season-ending loss doesn’t overshadow what she meant to the Bulldogs.

Cardwell averaged a Shelby County best 24.8 points and 14.5 rebounds per game as a senior. The small forward, who rotated between the backcourt and the frontcourt, filled in wherever she was needed.

Cardwell will likely choose between college scholarship offers from the University of Montevallo and Shelton State Community College.

Cardwell’s success this season led to her being named a candidate for the Bryant-Jordan Athletic Achievement award in Birmingham next month.

The duo leads the Shelby County Reporter 2010-2011 All-County basketball teams.

2010-2011 All-County

BOYS

G – Deondre Haynes, Jr, Calera

G – Demarcus Threatt, Jr. Thompson

F – Bruce Hamilton, Sr. Vincent

F – Keyon Wallace, Sr. Vincent

F – Tyler Madison, So. Shelby County

GIRLS

G – Cara Medders, Jr. Briarwood Chr.

G – Colby Ryan, Sr. Spain Park

F – Lauren Archer, Jr. Coosa Valley

F – Amber Cardwell, Sr. Montevallo

F – Anna Handlin, Sr. Briarwood Chr.

Honorable Mention

BOYS: OAK MOUNTAIN: Garrett Cosgrove, Colton McGriff and Taylor Kral; PELHAM: Xavier Lacey, Tanner Rice and Tony Williams; SPAIN PARK: Robby Prater, Mitchell Holt and Rembert Martin; THOMPSON: Jaylon Jones, Ryan Coleman and Ryan Spence; BRIARWOOD CHR.: Jason Laatsch, Luke Collins and James Palmer; CHELSEA: Jake Ganus, D.D. Washington and D.J. Washington; SHELBY COUNTY: Ty Lollar, Tre Cohill and Jonathan Pennington; CALERA: Jeremy Hyde, Ronnie Clark and Blayne Sumrall; MONTEVALLO: Demetrouse Conwell, Rashard Jones and Garrius Chappell; INDIAN SPRINGS: Charlie Simpson, Hart Wilson and Jeff Liu; VINCENT: Dontravious Moon, Anterio Rogers and Ben McKinney; WESTMINSTER: Jeffrey Stanford, Jake Doggett and Adam Gurley; KINGWOOD CHR.: Daniel Fillingim, Jordan Myers and Madison Webb; COOSA VALLEY: John Bullen, Sam Bullard and Stephen Cryer; CORNERSTONE CHR.: Kendall Moore, Hagain Joiner and Chase Payne; EVANGEL CHR.: DaJon Townson, Rodney King and Mark Underwood; HOPE CHR.: Terrence Moore, Pete Thomason and Blake Thomas.

GIRLS: OAK MOUNTAIN: Lay Watts, Mackenzie Garmany and Hannah Griffin; PELHAM: Erin Whitman, Sydney Days and Kristan Cordrey; SPAIN PARK: Jessica Freeman, Whitney Gulledge and Ashley Gaston; THOMPSON: KaDeisha Stowes, Asia Anchrum and Chelsea Taylor; BRIARWOOD CHR.: Abbie Cutcliffe, Meredith Botes and Hannah Wainwright; CHELSEA: Amanda Mock, Perri Lambert and Lauren Swee; SHELBY COUNTY: Aulicia Nunn, Alexis Lewis and Alysia Perkins; CALERA: A’Kia Harris, Kayla Brown and Diana Rutledge; MONTEVALLO: Savannah Smith, Kayla Cunningham and Savannah Upton; INDIAN SPRINGS: Andrea Mayo, Eugenia Hofammann and Mandy Mathews; VINCENT: Kiara Cohill, Brooklyn Jones and Pamala Mann; KINGWOOD CHR.: Casey Whitmer, Blair Holsombeck and Whitney Gillespie; COOSA VALLEY: Jordan Smiley, Kaylan Rich and Amelia Ripley; CORNERSTONE CHR.: Kailey Goodwin, Jana Kelbie Armstrong and Destiny Dillard; HOPE CHR.: Christina Jones, Leigh Wilson-Legg and Davina Drew; EVANGEL CHR.: Abby Letson, Katherine Stockman and Rainey Ketcham.