Although time has washed the exact memory from Southern Miss coach Joye Lee-McNelis’ recollection, McNelis hasn’t forgotten the moment she knew former Quitman standout Shonte Hailes was worthy of a scholarship offer.

Last Saturday, after Southern Miss’ 83-60 win over the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), McNeils recalled the moment. 

“I don’t remember which Lauderdale (school) it was at — it was a playoff game her junior year, and she shot behind ball screens and hit a couple of 3s behind ball screens. I told Coach (Gina) Skelton after that game, I said, ‘We’re going to offer. I’m ready to make the offer.’”

Three Conference USA Player of the Week awards later, it appears McNelis’ assessment of Hailes two years ago was the correct one. Just five days after winning her third C-USA Player of the Week award, Hailes, a sophomore point guard, followed with an 18-point, three-assist and two-steal performance against UTSA, as Southern Miss earned its 12th win of the season and its fourth in five games.

Hailes is currently averaging a team second-best 13.2 points per game and leads the team in assists per game with 5.5. She also ranks second on the team with 35 steals this season. Hailes credited her success thus far to the contributions of the four other Lady Eagles players who share the floor with her in any given game.

“My teammates,” Hailes said. “None of my points I could really score without my post players getting the alley deep, because that’s where I score mainly, off the run. My post players get the alley deep, and I have shooters to my right and my left, and they’re wide, so that pulls that defender out. And I know one-on-one, it’s between me and the basket, and I’m going to get there one way or the other.”

Hailes arrived at Southern Miss after leading Quitman to its first-ever girls state title in basketball in 2016. Hailes scored a team-high 24 points in the state championship and was named the C SPIRE Player of the Game as Quitman defeated Florence High School 58-48.

It didn’t take Hailes long to adjust to the college game.

In her collegiate opener, Hailes logged 28 minutes and scored four points to go along with four assists and four rebounds in Southern Miss’ season-opening win against the University of New Orleans. She ended her freshman campaign with 29 starts and averaged 6.4 points per game and 3.4 assists per game as the Lady Eagles went 23-11. She earned her first C-USA Player of the Week award in Jan. 2017, and was named to the C-USA All-Freshman team at the end of the season. 

While Hailes’ shooting has long been her strong suit, she’s blossomed in her role as an on-the-court facilitator. After tallying 111 assists as a freshman, Hailes has posted 109 — a C-USA best — in 20 games this season. Her 109 assists rank No. 8 for any Southern Miss sophomore, and she’s 52 assists shy of setting the single-season assists record. 

“The thing I think Shonte has grown in is bringing people along with her,” McNelis said. “I think she has learned and has grown in that area. The other thing is vocal leadership. Shonte could show up at Quitman and have a bad day of practice and still play somebody and dominate. You can’t do that in (college). We’ve seen growth just in the last month of Shonte being vocal in practice, taking a leadership role, trying to pull players along with her. I have told her time and time again we will go as she goes.”

Hailes said it took her a while to get adjusted to not only attending a university that has more students than her hometown, but also balancing her academic coursework with her demanding basketball schedule. But as the year progressed, life as a student-athlete became a little more manageable. As a sophomore, she feels more comfortable and confident.

“Freshman year, it was pretty tough; I was learning a lot, and I still am this year,” Hailes said. “But this year, I feel like we, as a team, we’re rolling. And it makes me more comfortable that I can get Megan Brown scoring, and Jayla (King) scoring, and I can get Respect (Leaphart) and Hanah (Lott) going, so it’s a learning process for all of us because we’re pretty young, but once all of us get rolling, we feel like we’re unbeatable.” 

Two years in, the Hailes-McNelis relationship has been symbiotic. McNelis had high expectations of Hailes when she offered the then-Quitman standout a scholarship, and she now entrusts her with Southern Miss’ offense.

“I truly believe that point guards are like steering wheels in a car,” McNelis said. “If you don’t have that steering wheel, you don’t know quite know where you’re going. It’s just going to roll all over the highway. That’s what Shonte Hailes means to us — she is truly the steering wheel of this car. She makes it go. We had two unbelievable wins on the road at UAB and at Middle Tennessee, and that’s truly the best preparation I’ve seen in Shonte Hailes, and it’s the best two-game performances.”