Former WSCC Lion takes command on the hardwood:
GDW Analysis:
HANCEVILLE: Faron Key is well known from when he played collegiate basketball at Wallace State, to an incredible run of success from Class 6A Hartselle High School.
Wallace State announced Wednesday Key will be the new basketball coach for the Lions. He replaces Allen Sharpe, who led the Lions to 26 wins in 35 games and the Alabama Community College Conference (ACCC) championship and berth to the NJCAA Nationals in 2023/24.
“We are excited to welcome Coach Key back to Wallace State and trust he will continue the tradition of excellence for which the Lions are known, a tradition that is part of his own personal history with the college," President Vickie Karolewics said.
“I am very thankful and grateful for the opportunity from Dr. Karolewics and Athletic Director Paul Bailey who are putting their trust in me,” said Key, who is a Cullman County native. “I’m excited because I played there and went to school there. I wanted to get back not just to Wallace State but to the community I grew up in. To come back and continue the winning tradition at Wallace State is a challenge I don’t take lightly. I will bring great energy, effort and enthusiasm to work every day, and will recruit players who do the same."
Key was a member of the Lions in the early 1990s, playing for Paul Brown, who came to Wallace State after being an assistant coach at Birmingham Southern College.
Key then worked his way on to the high school ranks with the last 10 years on the sidelines for the Hartselle Tigers.
A total of 174 victories have been earned at Hartselle, making Key the school's all time winningest coach.
Between 2019 to 2021, the Tigers went 72 & 17 with three 6A area championships and a berth to the Elite 8 in the AHSAA.
Key played at West Point High School, earning all county and all area honors.
Wallace State had the following that were eligible to play for the 2024/25 season after contributing to the school's first conference championship in over 10 years.
Redshirt freshman Jimmie Williams stood out and was named the conference tournament MVP.
Those who could return and be on Key's first squad include Tyson Walker, Arthur Johnson, Jalen Caruth, KD Anderson, Kami Young, Antonio Cochran. Each provided depth to the squad and served huge contribution in the Lions' late season run that propelled them from a 3rd place finish in the conference regular season to the conference championship in early March at the University of Alabama Huntsville's Spragins Hall.
Key will immediately begin the process of putting together his first roster, along with situations such as coaching staff, scheduling.
Photo of Faron Key with Hartselle basketball in the 2023/24 season.
Photo courtesy of the Hartselle Enquirer.
