Neenah's Chevalier Emery Jr. named Post-Crescent boys basketball player of the year

NEENAH – Chevalier Emery Jr. was always at his best when the situation demanded it.

The 6-foot senior point guard — whose nickname is "Ice" — helped lead the Neenah boys basketball team to its first WIAA Division 1 state title since 1978. The Rockets finished 29-1 and ended the season on a 27-game winning streak.

The Merrimack College (Mass.) signee averaged 18.3 points, four assists and 1.7 steals for the season, but it was his clutch play and outstanding defense in the playoffs that netted him The Post-Crescent's boys basketball player of the year honor.

His most memorable play — and perhaps Neenah's defining moment of the season — came when he hit the buzzer-beating, game-winning 3-pointer in the Rockets' 66-64 victory over Kimberly in a sectional semifinal. That victory capped a 3-0 season sweep of their Fox Valley Association rivals and league player of the year Jackson Paveletzke.

MORE: See Neenah's wild win over Kimberly on Emery Jr.'s 3-pointer at the buzzer

MORE: Appleton East standout Emily La Chapell is Post-Crescent girls basketball player of the year

"Probably the biggest thing was just how fortunate I was to be there in those moments," Emery Jr. said. "It was an amazing time, and I know that I had a lot of fun. And reflecting on it, it’s something that I can always go back to my family and when I hopefully have my kids and stuff like that, I can tell them about what I did and hopefully even show them."

Emery Jr. took time to reflect on the Rockets' state title and his future.

On what the title meant

"It was super special. I mean, Neenah is such a rich program and it has such a rich history with Ron Einerson, who kind of founded it and laid down the bricks you could say. For us, we just wanted to keep it going and we knew that we could do it, so once we did it when we came home, the community was just amazing. The parade was amazing and we had people from the alumni and the school come up and tell us stories and it was amazing. It was really surreal that our community wanted us to win as bad as we did."

On being left off The Post-Crescent's Fab 5 preseason team

"It was a motivator for me, but it was kind of a humble piece of pie too. It made me get back and work even harder and prove all those people wrong. It’s obviously an amazing feeling to win (player of the year), but it’s really a tribute to my teammates and my coaching staff. I was just the person who wanted to win everything. I didn’t care about my stat line. I didn’t need to be the player that got 25 points a game and lose. I was more of a player that needed whatever stats to win at the end of the night."

On how his game has developed

"I’d say from freshman year to senior year, obviously I feel I’ve grown and matured as a player. Consistency was a big thing for me. My junior year to my senior year, I wanted to be a lot more consistent in my numbers and just knowing stuff and learning. I played with the best Neenah basketball player to ever come through in Max Klesmit. And you learn a lot of things from those people. I still stay in contact with him and I ask him, ‘Hey, what do I do for these things?’ And I have a great coaching staff and they teach me things too. I think for me it was just learning and developing and working hard. It sounds cliché, but it really does help working out every single day and working on your craft and trying to become the best player you can be."

On the 3-pointer that beat Kimberly

"When we got to that huddle I came in there and I told everybody, ‘I’m going to bring us home. Just give me the ball. I’ll bring us home.' And that’s a tribute to the confidence that I have and the confidence that my teammates have in me, as well just to give me the ball. Those are moments you dream about as a kid and people still come up to me. I'll be out in public with my family or I’ll be reffing or something like that and they’ll stop me and say, ‘Oh, you’re the kid that hit that shot,’ or 'Congratulations.' That shot was so surreal and so crazy for me. It’s kind of like I felt like it was bigger than just the shot. I feel it was kind of like a stamp on what we could do that year and what we were going to do and what we’re going to accomplish and stuff like that."

On heading to Merrimack

"For my last couple of months, I’m just trying to take it all in, trying to see my family and my people before I leave because that’s the main thing. It’s about 18 hours away from here, so that has me worried just a little bit just missing my family. But on a basketball level, I’m really excited. I love the coaches out there and they’re just a great coaching staff and they have a really good hold on what I can do there and I could see myself playing there right away and they can see that as well. So I’m excited to get there and get to work and trying to help change the program and try to bring a little of the winning that I have there too as well, so I’m excited to get there."

What his coach says

"Chevalier had a tremendous senior season. His play on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor were obviously critical to our success. He shared our belief on the importance of defense to our success and that is special when you consider what he gave us production-wise on offense, in particular his willingness to share the ball when needed, make free throws when needed and, of course, make big shots when they were needed. He was also a vocal and emotional leader day-in and day-out.

"His teammates, particularly the seniors, deserve a lot of credit as well for their willingness to help him create a cohesive, focused and successful team."

– Lee Rabas, Neenah head coach

A closer look: Chevalier Emery Jr.

Year: Senior.

Position: Point guard.

Height: 6-0.

Family: Parents, Stacy Berzinsky (mom), Chevalier Emery Sr. (dad), Shawn Berzinsky (stepdad), Tiffany Emery (stepmom); siblings, Aiden Berzinsky, Braxten Berzinsky, Alanna Emery.

Favorite food: Chick-fil-A.

Favorite movie: "Space Jam."

Favorite TV show: "Outer Banks."

Favorite school subject: English.

Favorite athlete: Michael Jordan.

Notable: Unanimous first-team all-Fox Valley Association. Averaged 18.3 points, four assists and 1.7 steals. Was 55-of-147 from beyond the 3-point arc (37%) and finished with 1,017 career points. Had a banner postseason in leading the Rockets to their first WIAA state title since 1978. Buried the game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer in Neenah's sectional semifinal victory over Kimberly to complete a 3-0 sweep of the Rockets' FVA rival. Had 16 points and seven assists in a 60-52 state semifinal win over Racine Case and 19 points and five assists in the 64-52 victory over Brookfield Central in the title game. First-team Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association all-state in Division 1 and fourth-team Associated Press all-state.

Post-Crescent all-area boys basketball

FIRST TEAM

Chevalier Emery Jr., sr., Neenah, 6-0: Player of the year.

Josiah Butler, sr., Fox Valley Lutheran, 6-3: Averaged 25.8 points and shot 237-of-433 from the field (54.7%). Also averaged 4.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.0 steals. Was the North Eastern Conference player of the year and a unanimous first-team selection. Honorable mention on the Associated Press all-state team and on the WBCA all-state team in Division 2.

Jackson Paveletzke, sr., Kimberly, 6-3: Wofford commit averaged 30 points, 6.1 assists and 5.7 rebounds. Unanimous first-team all-FVA and the league's player of the year. Second-team AP all-state and first-team WBCA all-state in Division 1. Finished with 1,674 career points.

Maximus Nelson, sr., Appleton North, 6-8: Valparaiso commit averaged 23.7 points and 11.6 rebounds. Unanimous first-team all-FVA. Finished with 1,698 career points. High honorable mention on the AP all-state team and a WBCA first-team all-state pick in Division 1.

Jeremy Lorenz, jr., Brillion, 6-8: Averaged 19.8 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists in leading the Lions to the Division 3 state semifinals. Honorable mention on the AP all-state team and a first-team WBCA all-state selection in Division 3. Unanimous first-team all-Eastern Wisconsin Conference.

JJ Paider, sr., Neenah, 6-7: Averaged 11.7 points, 11.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists. Had a sensational WIAA state tournament, totaling 31 points and a state-record 32 rebounds in two games in helping the Rockets to the Division 1 title. High honorable mention on the AP all-state team and honorable mention on the WBCA all-state team in D1. Named the top senior post player by wissports.net.

SECOND TEAM

Caleb Glaser, jr., Appleton East, 6-7: Averaged 15.6 points and 5.1 rebounds. First-team all-FVA and honorable mention on the AP all-state team and WBCA all-state team in Division 1.

Landon VanCalster, sr., Freedom, 6-7: Averaged 17.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists. Finished with 1,261 career points. Will play collegiately at Northern Michigan. Honorable mention on the AP all-state team and first-team WBCA all-state in Division 3.

Chris Morgan, sr., Kaukauna, 6-2: Purdue-Fort Wayne commit was a first-team all-FVA selection. Averaged 21.2 points, 7.2 assists and 4.2 rebounds. Finished with 1,514 career points. Honorable mention on the AP all-state team and on the WBCA all-state team in Division 1.

Alex Sherwood, jr., Xavier, 6-7: First-team all-Bay Conference. Averaged 19.8 points and 10.1 rebounds. Has 1,008 career points. Was a WBCA all-state selection in Division 3.

Carter Thomas, sr., Neenah, 6-5: First-team all-FVA and honorable mention on the WBCA Division 1 and AP all-state teams. Averaged 14.8 points and 3.8 rebounds. Also hit 50% from beyond the arc (45-of-90). Finished with 1,077 career points. Will play collegiately at UW-Oshkosh.

Jalen Womack, sr., Menasha, 6-1: First-team all-Bay Conference. Averaged 21.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists. Will play collegiately at Bryant & Stratton. Honorable mention on the WBCA all-state team in Division 2. Finished with 1,232 career points.

HONORABLE MENTION

Tyler Borowski, sr., Appleton East; Gavin Cullen, jr., Stockbridge; Daniel Griffith, sr., St. Mary Catholic; Blake Kortz, sr., Freedom; Logan Loether, jr., Winneconne; August Maurer, jr., Hortonville; Owen Pawlikowski, sr., Kimberly; Charlie Pfefferle, sr., Xavier; Dawson Schmidt, jr., Shiocton; Cole Uhlenbrauck, sr., St. Mary Catholic; Kade Van Asten, sr., Little Chute.

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This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Neenah's Chevalier Emery Jr. is boys basketball player of the year