Meridian High School boys’ basketball head coach Jim Smith recalls the first time he ever met Will Davis, when the future senior captain was in seventh grade. “He was a little guy,” the decorated coach remembers. “But he could shoot.”
That little guy – who is a bit bigger now – just became the fifth player in Meridian boys’ program history to eclipse 1,000 career points, as the Mustangs handled Brentsville on Thursday night.
After taking back-to-back losses for the first time since February of 2024, Meridian’s boys got right with an 81-30 win at Manassas Park on Tuesday and then returned home to face Brentsville. It was a quick 8-2 lead for the Mustangs before the Tigers climbed back within 12-10 in the first quarter, but after that, the result was never in doubt.
Meridian ended the opening period on a 7-2 run and then jumped out to a 37-22 advantage at halftime. Davis, who needed 13 points to achieve the milestone, had nine at the break and then hit two threes early in the third quarter as the game was briefly paused to recognize his efforts. The Mustangs went on to pull ahead by 29 with the starters sitting most of the final frame.
The night was all about Davis, with anticipation having been building for weeks. Program alums Max Ashton and Hollman Smith (both Class of 2019) – two of the four additional members of the 1K Club – were in attendance, while outside the gym, balloons were set up in the shape of the number 1,000.
“I owe it all to my teammates,” Davis said of his moment which has yet to fully sink in. “I wouldn’t have this opportunity without them.”
For Smith, who has helped Davis grow from a spark plug off the bench his freshman year into the star he is now, there’s plenty to reflect on.
“He’s just such a fun kid to coach,” he remarked. “He does so many things for us… he’s so much more than just a shooter. He screens, he gets guys open, he’s athletic for his size. He’s unselfish and he never pads his stats. He’s earned every single one of those points.”
Smith remembers when Davis first made the Varsity team as a freshman, and he was unsure how to fit him into the rotation. He got some run in an early season road contest at Justice, and, from his coach’s recollection, scored “about eight points in two minutes.” After that, there was no going back.
Though all of the attention was on Davis, it was a total team win for the Mustangs. Jesper Pender scored 16 while Mason Pye had 14 and Jake Bryan had 12, in addition to Davis’ 15. With the win, Meridian improves to 14-3.
Next up, the boys will stay home to host Warren County on Senior Night next Tuesday.
