ON Air with 912 Sports

     By Kevin Price

It’s hard to believe there once was a time when Martin Davis wasn’t very good at basketball.

That’s not an opinion from a scout or coach. That assessment came directly from Davis herself.

“I stunk. I was bad,” says the Brunswick High senior. 

Of course, the narrative is much different now regarding Davis, the subject of our MVP story for this edition of 912 Sports Magazine that is devoted to basketball as we begin the 2026 portion of the athletic season for high schools here in our Southeast Georgia coverage area. 

Davis is currently a standout guard for the Lady Pirates who have been one of the best teams in the area for several years now. Davis has been named first-team all-region each season of her prep basketball career. She also was chosen by the coaches in Region 1-AAAAA as the Offensive Player of the Year for the league the past two seasons. 

And having already been an all-state selection and an honorable-mention pick previously, Davis came into this season as a preseason all-state player as she looks to wrap up her high-school days before going on to play in college. 

Before diving deeper into all of that as this story unfolds, it’s probably best to take a step back and look at how Davis’ personal story has evolved from childhood to present day. 

It’s safe to say Davis was born with strong basketball genes. Her mom, Fain Spurlock Ginn, was a star player at Deerfield-Windsor Academy in Albany before going on to play for the legendary Andy Landers at the University of Georgia as a walk-on. 

She played limited minutes in one season with the Lady Bulldogs in Athens in the mid-1990s before turning down a scholarship offer from Landers as she chose to give up basketball and concentrate on academics. 

Her high-school jersey number is one of only a few that have been retired at Deerfield-Windsor for any sport. The name Fain Spurlock carries weight still to this day at the private school in Southwest Georgia as Davis found out a few years back.

“I went to a summer camp there once. It’s called the Camp of Champs. A lot of people knew her, knew her jersey was retired,” Davis recalls. “It was cool to see where she grew up. They talked about how good she was, how tough she was and how smart she was.”

With Davis, it took a little bit for those roundball genes to really start showing. She played basketball in the county rec league in elementary school with both her mom and dad, Brian Ginn, coaching teams that also included her older sister who began her freshman year in college at Georgia this past fall. 

“I was just doing it to have fun,” Davis says of playing basketball back then. 

Davis went out for the team at Glynn Middle School in Brunswick as a sixth-grader but didn’t make the squad. She didn’t give up on the game, however. She tried out for the Glynn Middle team again the following year and survived the final cut after tryouts. 

“I probably got one of the last spots on the team,” she points out with a little laugh. 

Small and timid, as her dad describes her back then, Davis was growing frustrated with basketball and not getting to play much in games. That same seventh-grade season produced the turning point for Davis when it comes to basketball, though. 

As the Lady Hurricanes were getting prepared late in the season to play another local team, Jane Macon, head coach Gisha Dudley asked if there was anyone who wanted to guard Patrice Mungin, the best player for the Lady Eagles who hadn’t been stopped by anyone to that point in the season. 

Probably much to the coach’s surprise, Martin volunteered. Dudley gave Martin the chance and might have been even more surprised by the results of that decision.

Wherever Mungin went, Davis went with her. Had she gone to the concession stand during play, Davis was going as well and likely would have been in her hip pocket as they made their way there and back. 

You should get the drift. Davis guarded Jane Macon’s top scorer closely from the opening tip to the final horn. 

“Patrice was in eighth-grade and was averaging 18 to 20 points,” Davis says. “I held her to 2 points that game. That game, that’s why I’m still playing today. We talk about it all the time. That game gave me the confidence I needed.”

That defensive prowess has been on display ever since Davis started as a freshman at Glynn Academy where she also played as a sophomore before transferring to Brunswick for her final two seasons in high school. 

All the while, she has grown, gotten physically stronger and has steadily improved from season to season on the offensive end of the court. Davis averaged 12.8 points a game as a freshman, 13.9 as a sophomore and 14.8 last season as a junior while helping the Lady Pirates to the Elite Eight in the state tournament. 

This season, the 5-foot-9 guard was averaging 15.5 points a game for the Lady Pirates through their first eight games as they got off to an 8-0 start before traveling to Florida to play in the Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational. 

What’s ironic is the decision by Davis to transfer to Brunswick prior to last season made her teammates with Mungin who was the team captain and point guard for the Lady Pirates last season as a senior. Mungin also was featured as a Scholar-Athlete this time a year ago by 912 Sports in our basketball issue. 

Davis says now she was antsy about going to her first practice with the Lady Pirates two summers ago, largely because she wasn’t sure how Mungin would react when she came through the door. 

“I was super nervous. I couldn’t sleep the night before,” she said. 

Davis had friends from middle school already playing for the Lady Pirates. And as it turns out, Davis quickly hit it off with the Brunswick player she feared would be the last to accept the former top player from the crosstown rival as part of the BHS team.

“Patrice took me under her wing,” Davis notes. “And what Patrice says goes. I was fine with everyone else.”

When being interviewed for this story prior to Christmas, Davis mentioned she had seen Mungin just a few days earlier. 

“I hugged her and told her how much I missed her this year,” says Davis of the player who obviously was a key figure in that middle-school game that kick started Davis’ progression in hoops. 

This season, Davis has taken Mungin’s place as the starting point guard for the Lady Pirates. In addition to scoring in double-figures, Davis was averaging nearly 5 assists per game and also 5.5 steals a contest to lead Region 1 while ranking among the state’s leaders as well when this story was submitted for deadline. 

She also is Brunswick’s primary team leader, on and off the floor, this season. 

“You couldn’t ask for a better one,” said Brunswick head coach Maria Mangram. “She’s a great kid, a true student-athlete. She’s a hard-worker, always gives everything she has. She’s a good player, but she’s an even better person.”

Obviously, Mangram once was drawing up game plans that involved defending Davis when she played for Glynn and the Lady Terrors had the ball. 

“When we played against her as a freshman and sophomore, we didn’t guard her shot,” the Brunswick coach says. “We knew she wanted to drive the ball and get to the basket. That’s what she was best at doing.”

That hasn’t changed, but defenses do have to at least think about guarding Davis differently now. She has worked to become a better shooter from the perimeter to go with her fondness for taking the ball to the bucket. 

And while she has those natural abilities that finally shined through before she entered high school, the main thing that Davis has done is work to hone her talents and improve her overall skills.

Several days a week, she trains with Sarah Helder, a former coach at Frederica Academy who once played for both the Lady Knights and Glynn before enjoying a stellar collegiate career at Mercer University in Macon as well. 

Davis also has played elite-level AAU basketball with the Essence organization based in Florida. She regularly stays after Brunswick practices to put up extra shots and the team’s coaches will tell you she calls frequently to see if one of them can open the gym for her to practice on her own as well. 

She noted that shooting baskets oftentimes serves as “therapy” following a long day. 

“Basketball is fun for me,” Davis said. “I like to put in my ear buds, listen to some music and get up shots.”

Davis could go to college without playing basketball. She owns a 4.2 grade-point average while taking advance placement and dual-enrollment courses for college credits, so she certainly has the grades to get there. 

But basketball is very much part of her future plans while continuing her education beyond high school. Davis has already received scholarship offers from Middle Georgia State and also Georgia College and State, a pair of in-state schools that compete in NCAA Division II and are members of the Peach Belt Conference. 

Other playing opportunities could be forthcoming as well for Davis who figures she’ll decide on a college destination this spring or soon after Brunswick finishes its season.

In the meantime, she hopes to make more good memories and highlight-reel plays while finishing her senior year with the Lady Pirates who were ranked as high as No. 4 in Class AAAAA in one state poll last month. 

Speaking of highlights, one of her biggest as it relates to basketball was meeting WNBA star Caitlin Clark when she was in the Golden Isles last November to compete in a pro-am event prior to the 2024 RSM Classic, a PGA Tour tournament held every year at Sea Island. 

Clark even signed a pair of basketball sneakers for Davis that she has displayed in a glass-case for safe-keeping. 

“We got a video of me talking to her. It was so cool watching that,” Davis said. “I was total fan-girl.”

      By Kevin Price

Wayne County basketball has been a family affair for our Scholar-Athlete in this issue of 912 Sports Magazine. 

Alyssa Robinson, a senior standout for the Lady Yellow Jackets, has been around the Wayne County program since she was in middle school. 

Her older sister Amalia played for the Lady Jackets first, and Alyssa used to tag along when she went to offseason workouts and practices with the team. Alyssa actually did more than hang out while the Lady Jackets practiced, however. 

“I played with them a lot in the summer,” she said. “I cried a little bit back then. They were good and bigger than I was. I was timid and couldn’t do a lot of stuff.”

It’s a different story now. 

Wayne County head coach Kala Hobbs jokes that Robinson was 5-foot-11 in sixth-grade just like she is now. But now, she is certainly stronger, has way more confidence, and undeniably a better all-around player than she was back then. 

Robinson is currently the unquestioned leader for the Lady Jackets while her mother sits alongside Hobbs on the team bench as an assistant coach for the Lady Jackets. 

Hobbs has had the pleasure of watching her top player blossom on the court the last four years. Robinson has been a steady force on the defensive end since joining Wayne County’s varsity team as a freshman while steadily improving as an offensive player throughout her career. 

All the while, Robinson has been a mainstay atop the Class of 2026 when it comes to academics since starting high school. 

“She’s been No. 1 in her class since eighth-grade,” Hobbs said about Robinson who is set to graduate this spring as the valedictorian at Wayne County. “She is very much a people-pleaser and wants to make you happy and proud. 

“She’s that way in the classroom, too. She doesn’t want to be second. She leads by example but has turned into a vocal leader. She’s a happy, high-spirited person. She’s definitely what you want your leader to be. She goes about things the right way.”

Hobbs says Robinson was determined from the start to match the success of her sister who was a member of Wayne County’s 2018-19 team that finished 23-5 and reached the Elite 8 of the Class AAAAA state tournament. 

Amalia played on the varsity team all four years at Wayne County, and Alyssa was dead set on doing the same, Hobbs notes. 

“She came in hungry for a spot on the team,” the coach said. “She asked me when she was in eighth-grade what she needed to do to make the team. I knew she would figure it out.”

Robinson had the defensive part pretty well down from the start. 

“I think she learned a lot from watching,” Hobbs said when asked about Robinson’s defensive prowess. “She’s pretty quick and obviously smart. She understands what someone is trying to do on offense and knows what she needs to do to stop it.”

As for her own offensive game, Robinson has had to work to develop that and become a consistent contributor for the Lady Jackets in the scoring department. 

That’s where another coach comes into play. Jimmy Hires, who is Coach Hobbs’ dad, has been instrumental in helping Robinson grow as an offensive player. The former Richmond Hill boys coach who led the Wildcats to three state championships during his legendary career here in Southeast Georgia, has spent countless hours in the gym helping Robinson with her game. 

“He’s my community coach,” Hobbs notes. “It’s been fun for him. It’s easier when you have someone like her who shows a high interest in improving and is willing to do the extra work.”

Together, the father-daughter coaching combo has helped Robinson develop low-post moves and also has worked to improve her shot away from the basket. 

This year already, Robinson has done more than rebound and score on put-back attempts at the bucket. She has been among Wayne County’s top scorers in several games and reached double-figures a handful of times in the first month of the season when this article was submitted on deadline. 

The Lady Jackets were off to a 10-4 start through mid-December and had several more non-region games to play before beginning their region schedule the first week of January. 

“He’s really pushed me, made me the person I am today,” Robinson said about working with Coach Hires. “It’s definitely all love with him, but it’s tough-love. He’s made me the player I am and made me tougher, too.”

Basketball isn’t the only sport Robinson has played for Wayne County. She also has been a standout middle blocker and hitter for the school’s volleyball team and was named to the all-region team this fall. 

Hobbs, who alsop coaches the volleyball squad in at the Jesup school, got Robinson to give the sport a try going into her freshman year. 

“I hadn’t played before,” she says. “The first time I played was in tryouts. I loved it and picked up the game pretty well.”

At the urging of several friends, Robinson also gave soccer a try for the first time last year. 

“I didn’t want to play, but they signed me up for tryouts anyway,” she says. “I’m glad I played. It’s been a fun experience.”

She laughs when she says she can’t kick the ball, so that’s why she’s restricted to playing goal-keeper. Those same defensive insticts that she uses on the basketball court have come in handy for Robinson on the soccer pitch, too. 

“I can’t use my feet, but I have fast reflexes, I guess,” said Robinson who also played junior varsity tennis for two years early on in high school. 

When it comes to academics, she is a sure-fire star. During her four years at Wayne County, Robinson has finished 23 different classes with a perfect grade of 100. 

She has taken seven different Advanced Placement courses to earn college credits including the environmental science and calculus courses that she is presently taking as a senior. 

Robinson is a member of the school Beta Club and also student council, serving as vice president for the senior class. She also has served on the Student Advisory Board as a sports ambassador and has been involved with the Student Chamber. 

She is also active in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and has been recognized as a Reach Scholar. She was a member of Wayne County’s homecoming court this fall. 

Robinson has already been accepted by Georgia Tech and Mercer University. She plans to submit applications with Yale, Cornell and the University of Georgia as well. 

She is interested in becoming a dermatologist. 

“I’ve always tried to make good grades so I can go to a good college,” Robinson said. “I’ve always wanted to get a scholarship, be able to pay for school myself and not have my mom have to pay for it.”