Nickhai Howard does a little bit of everything for the Webb City High School boys basketball team.
In fact, the versatile senior guard is the definition of a stat-sheet stuffer.
Howard is playing a crucial role for the Webb City Cardinals, who are off to an 8-1 start to the 2020-21 season.
Webb City continued its winning ways by beating Joplin 66-55 on Saturday in the championship game of the Kaminsky Classic.
It was Webb City’s seventh straight victory.
“It’s really exciting,” Howard said of his team’s stellar start to the season. “I’ve been here four years and we haven’t had that good of a start yet. It’s just really exciting to get off to this kind of a start. And we’re hoping to keep building on it.”
As the team’s starting point guard, Howard is a primary ball-handler and distributor. But he’s much more than that.
The 5-foot-11 Howard not only sets up his teammates, but he can also score points in bunches.
As far as his offensive game, Howard has shown the ability to knock down jumpers from all over the floor, including beyond the arc, and he finishes well around the basket.
Howard is also one of the team’s leaders in rebounds and steals, and he can guard multiple positions on the defensive end.
Simply put, Howard fills up the box score each and every night he takes the court.
Want proof? Howard is now averaging 16 points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals per game.
“I think he’s the most complete player in Southwest Missouri,” Webb City coach Jason Horn said. “Nickhai does a little bit of everything. He’s a great rebounding guard and he handles the ball. He can drive and finish. He sees the floor well. And he shoots at a high clip.”
Howard and the Cardinals were in danger of seeing their winning streak halted on Saturday, as the Joplin Eagles gained all of the momentum with a big second quarter.
But the Cardinals used a 17-2 run in the third quarter to take control en route to a hard-fought victory over their rivals.
“We were really focused on making our layups in the second half,” Howard said, noting the Cardinals didn’t shoot well in the first half. “We missed a lot of layups in the first half. We just had to focus on making shots because we were playing pretty great defense. We had to get our offense going. We just got a lot of momentum going.”
An all-tourney selection, Howard played all 32 minutes against Joplin.
“That tells you what kind of athlete he is and says a lot about his conditioning and the toughness he plays with,” Horn said.
Howard compiled 17 points, six rebounds and four assists in his team’s 65-55 win over a solid Nevada squad on Thursday and he had 16 points, six assists and three steals in a 75-43 victory over Clever on Wednesday.
With the conference slate set to begin, it’s safe to say Howard will continue to play a crucial role for the Cardinals, who have hopes of contending for a Central Ozark Conference crown and making a deep postseason run.
When asked about Howard’s importance to his team’s success, Horn summed it up this way.
“As he goes, we’re going to go,” Horn said.
