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Hines is Mr. Triple Double
You can’t miss Terry Hines. With a flowing mullet, head band and infectious smile, he’s announcing his presence with style for the Covenant Lions. His game talks the loudest though.
Hines turned in an all-around dominant performance Thursday night at Boyd, notching a triple double as the Lions destroyed Boyd 80-48 on the road. It was the first time Hines, who has been playing for Covenant for nearly a decade, picked up a win at JK Stanley Gymnasium.
His stat line jumped off the page – 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. It didn’t tell the whole story of just how impressive Hines played though.
In was in full control from the opening tip, slicing and dicing the Bronco defense for layups or easy assists. When Boyd kept Hines out of the paint, he was able to sink his patented pull-up around the free-throw line or step out and drill 3-pointers.
If Hines didn’t want to score, he worked to set up teammates. It worked to perfection as Covenant notched a season-high point total.
“The biggest thing is my teammates hit shots. We scored 80 points – that’s the most we’ve hit this year,” said Hines. “We were taking it to the rim and getting out in transition. They were down a little bit and we used that to our advantage and took off.”
Late in the game, Hines added a degree of difficulty to everything he did. He already had 21 points and the Lions were well on their way to victory, so Hines had a chance to spice things up.
He soared into piles of players several times to grab boards, showing off unreal stamina after playing most of the game. After one contested rebound, Hines spotted a teammate streaking down the court. He threw a full-court bounce pass that touched the court once and landed right in his teammates hands for a layup.
To notch the triple-double, Hines rushed up the court and fooled the entire Boyd defense with a no-look pass that doubled as his 10th assist.
It was an incredible way for Hines to leave Boyd – the longtime rival he has worked hard to beat over the years.
“I’ve always wanted to beat Boyd. This is the second win in my senior year and a triple-double is the way to go out,’ said Hines.
All his great offensive exploits came while he had the assignment of tangling with Boyd big man Christian Rogers on defense. Hines did his best to limit Rogers in the first half, using his speed and athleticism to mitigate a huge size advantage Rogers owned.
It was no surprise to his coach or teammates that Hines had another big game. It was what everybody expects from the senior point guard with plenty of flair.
“We look at him as our top guy,” said fellow senior Elijah Smith. “Rebounding, assisting, scoring. We need it. Once he finds his spots, he’s there all night. And he helps us find our spots. He helps us all night.”
David Netherton, a senior who has played with Hines for years, added, “He’s definitely our leader. He works – he works at home a lot on his ball-handling skills and his shooting. He can do it all.”
Dropping a big statistical line is nothing new for Hines. He fills up the stat sheet every night as Covenant’s leading scorer, rebounder and passer.
“He’s probably been pretty close (to a triple-double) before, but I just didn’t know it,” said coach Ryan Smith. “Coaches have let me know afterwards he’s been close, but I took him out. It’s good to see he finally got one.
“It explains how important he really is. He’s our leader and it’s good to have a leader who does everything. He’s important all the way around.”
Even his rivals take notice.
Boyd coach Chris Perry has faced off with Hines several times over the last two years. He knows all-too-well how hard it can be to contain Hines on the court.
“Ryan will be the first to tell you that he’s essentially a coach on the floor. He knows where everybody is supposed to be,” said Perry when asked about Hines’ skillset. “This is the benefit of Covenant or Boyd – K-12 schools. Ryan has taught Terry from the beginning, so it’s second nature to him.
“He’s a good point guard, a smart kid and a talented kid. He knows what to do and where to go – it says a lot about him. He’s a good player.”
Hines is quickly approaching another huge milestone. Entering Thursday’s game, Hines was just 41 points away from scoring his 1,000th point. He’ll likely accomplish it in his next game as he is now 20 points away.
While it’ll be a huge moment when it happens, Hines isn’t too worried about it. He’ll do whatever it takes to win – even if it means his personal stats don’t get a boost.
“If I miss 1,000 and finish with 999 points and a championship, I’ll gladly count it,” said Hines.
It’s much more likely if Covenant is going to hoist a trophy next month, it’ll take more nights like Hines had Thursday at Boyd. The good thing for the Lions is everybody’s favorite point guard is more than capable of delivering every night.