CHERRY TWP — Scott Booth has always had a basketball in his hands.

This year, he's become a lot more lethal with it.

Booth, a Union High School sophomore, was raised in a basketball family in Rimersburg. Hoops were as much a part of his life as toy cars, skinned knees and cartoons on television.

"It's always been basketball for him," said Union coach Karen Davis, who is also Booth's aunt. "Dribbling it, putting that little hoop up in the house and slamming it constantly. It drove me nuts. My sister, it didn't bother her."

It doesn't bother Davis nearly as much now because Booth is a big reason why Union is alone atop the Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference standings.

He's averaging 20.2 points and more than 10 rebounds per game for the Knights. As a freshman, he averaged 6.8 points per contest.

Still, he showed glimpses of what he has done already this season, scoring 39 points in the final three games last season.

"I knew he had it in him," Davis said. "This year, he knows he has to step up for us to win.He has to put points on the board. He's a gamer. He's definitely a gamer."

But Booth didn't expect to be making this kind of an impact so soon.

Smooth off the dribble, he's adept at pulling up for a midrange jumper or zooming past a defender for a layup.

In the post, he has a knack for getting the defender out of position.

Just to keep teams honest, he can also hit a 3-pointer from time to time.

"I knew I had to step up this year, but I also knew I had players around me," Booth said. "I knew I had to be one of the leading scorers, but I didn't know what kind of leading scorer I would have to be."

Teams have discovered what kind of scorer Booth is — and are trying in vain to stop him.

Booth has been forced to work against schemes to limit his opportunities.

That's OK by him. He's surrounded by other players who can also score: A.J. Ethriedge, NeilScott, Spencer Varner,Cody Mortimer and Clay Burns.

"A-CValley went into a box-in-one on me," Booth said. "And other teams, I could tell they were putting their best defender on me. I don't get real worried about it because I know there are other players on the team who can score."

Booth finds it kind of flattering, in fact.

"It gets in your head," Booth said. "But I try not to let it get to me."

Perhaps more surprising than his scoring splurge has been Booth's rebounding numbers.

At 6 feet, Booth isn't the tallest player on the team, but what he lacks in height he makes up for in basketball IQ.

"I think a lot of that (rebounding) is he's smart," Davis said. "He realizes where the ball is going to come off at."

Booth said rebounding is all attitude.

"I try to watch the ball," Booth said. "I think a lot of it is just work. I try to work hard for the rebounds and not letting them get any shots."

Here's a scary thought for Union opponents:Davis believes the best is yet to come for Booth.

"He's just scratching the surface," Davis said. "He needs to get stronger. He needs to hit the weights to develop more of a game for him."