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HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
Todd Mayo to join brother O.J. in Memphis
South Point’s Todd Mayo is quickly making a name for himself, averaging 24 points a game in his first season of varsity action.
Purchase this photoHUNTINGTON — To Todd Mayo, basketball has always been business.
He goes to work every day in a three-piece suit — jersey, shorts, sneakers — and puts in long hours to exceed his goals.
However, now entering his junior year, he wants to learn the business end in more detail from brother O.J., who is now in the NBA with the Memphis Grizzlies.
For that reason, Todd has decided to join his family in moving to Germantown, Tenn., a town just 21 miles outside of Memphis. He will play basketball for Houston High School this fall.
“He’s definitely one of the reasons I wanted to move down here,” Mayo said. “He’s taught me a lot this summer. I’m more serious about basketball now.”
Todd said he and O.J. have grown extremely close as the two have worked out together the entire summer.
He learned several things about life as a basketball player from his brother, and said the more he learned, the more he liked what he saw.
Now, he will continue to learn. The difference is he will be within miles of an NBA franchise and one of the top college programs. It all will help him prepare for his future as a basketball player, he said.
“O.J.’s been putting me through a lot of workouts and showing me different things,” Mayo said. “I’m just more focused on what it is that I am about to do.”
Things weren’t always so clear for Todd Mayo this summer.
As the summer was coming to a close, Todd had a decision to make. His family was moving to Germantown and he could either go to Mountain State Academy or move with them.
He said no matter what, due to his family’s move, he would not have been at South Point this year.
“I thought about going to Mountain State, but I didn’t want to leave my family by themselves,” Mayo said. “O.J. is going to be staying closer to downtown with the players, so I wanted to be there with them.”
Mayo said that Houston High School is much like South Point in that it is considered a football school right now. He said he hopes to change that quickly though.
“I’m just going to work out and get better and we are going to see what can happen down here,” Mayo said. “It’s exciting to think about. It’s going to be fun.”
Mayo said that despite the junior year being a big year in the recruiting circles, the recruiting benefits did not factor into the decision because several schools have already offered.
Marshall University coach Donnie Jones was the first to offer Mayo a Division-I scholarship last year.
Playing for the Pointers in his sophomore year, Mayo averaged 22.6 points per game and shot 47 percent from the field. He led South Point to an undefeated regular season at 20-0 and its first Ohio Valley Conference title since 1990.
