This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior men’s basketball guard J.T. Gray. Amidst plenty of turnover and transition, Gray has found his role for the Panthers. On Friday night, Gray scored a career-high 19 points in the Panthers 77-53 win over Durham School of the Arts in Hillsborough. Gray knocked down four 3-pointers as the Panthers pushed out to a 40-22 first half lead. Gray is in his first year as a regular rotation player under head coach Derryl Britt. In his first career start against Riverside on November 21, Gray scored 18 points off 4-of-7 shooting from 3-point range. Against Carrboro on December 29, Gray scored a career-high 21 points as the Panthers defeated the Jaguars 78-51 in the Southeast Alamance Holiday Hoopla Invitational in Haw River. In the opening round against Apex, Gray scored 16 points. Gray leads the team with 33 3-pointers. He averages 11.8 points per game. In his first season at the varsity level, Gray has become a reliable source of outside scoring as the Panthers put new parts together following several prominent departures last summer. When Gray graduates in June, he plans on attending N.C. State, where he will study cybersecurity. The Panthers will return to action against South Granville on Monday. Orange will host J.F. Webb in its final regular season home game on Tuesday night in Hillsborough.
