The opposing team - the Warriors - seven deep, appeared to be older than us. They certainly were taller than all off our players, except for, maybe, Wes T. and Benton W. In fact, before the game, one of our mothers believed me when in response to to a question from her about how old the boys on the other team were, I said "seventh graders." Our boys are in fourth grade (JP is in third grade), but they've been playing up against fifth graders the last half of the WNSL winter basketball season.
The Warriors took control early, especially when they began to run a full court press. As was the case last Saturday, our guards panicked a bit and threw the ball away repeated on attempted half or full out baseball style passes. I've said for a couple of years that any player who attempt a baseball pass should be immediately benched, because not one of them is strong enough to execute one safely and correctly. It's a turnover, nine times out of ten. Last night was no different.
Fortunately, the Warriors had only one ball handler, maybe two, and they struggled mightily against our press, "full court diamond." JP, as always, was tough on defense. What he lacks in foot speed, he makes up for in effort. He had several steals, deflections or held balls and spent almost as much time on the floor as he did upright. That's JP.
For our boys, no one was hitting any shots in the first, except for Wes T., Chris's son. He kept us in the game, and at halftime, the boys were down 16 - 12.
In the second half, our boys turned up the defensive pressure a bit. JP threw in a 10-foot bank shot from the right side, unintentionally using the glass. He looked a little bit like Perry County's Mike Rhodes at Vanderbilt when I was a kid.
Wes continued to play like a horse, and the boys rode him hard. J.D., one of the brightest kids I know, fed Wes 3 or 4 times with perfect bounce passes in the paint. I was proud of Wes, because he was posted up and demanding the ball time and again, which runs counter to his easygoing personality. We've worked with Wes on posting up strong, turning into his man and taking the ball right up and into him, rather than falling away and throwing up a prayer as he often does. I've told Wes not to look to pass, but to look to score.
A little bit about Wes - I've coached him in baseball since he was 5, fall and spring. Great boy, good natured, easy going, almost always smiling. There's a little bit of Stevie Hamer in him at this point in that I'm not sure he enjoys being the tallest kid on the team and all that comes with it. His dad, Christ, is 6'5" or 6'6", tall and thin, so Wes is going to be tall, too. His personality is such that he normally doesn't have that unquenchable desire to dominate a basketball game. If he can consistently find that, he'll be a force.
He found it against the Warriors and he was a force. Their boys - several of whom were Wes's size - didn't know what to do with him. He pounded the boards relentlessly, often getting second and third shots. He played hard on defense, blocking shots and getting after loose balls. He was intense, which was beautiful to see. Simply put, he was unstoppable. Our boys knew it and the other team knew it. Amazing.
It was nip and tuck down the stretch and it looked like we would lose a close one. Wes committed an ill advised foul late in the game - his fifth - at mid-court when he reached across a ball handler's body to swipe at the ball. He raised his arms in astonishment when the referee blew the whistle. It was right in front of me and it was a good call. He had tears in his eyes as he walked dejectedly to the bench. Ballgame? Not that night.
Our boys tied the score with less than 20 seconds left, then committed a foul that sent one of the Warriors to the line with 8 seconds left in the game. Their player hit the first free throw, then missed the second one. Winn got the rebound and called timeout. The team waiting to play behind us on the bleachers must have known some of our boys because they were stomping on the bleachers and chanting "LET'S GO 'DORES!!" It was loud.
The referees should have given us the ball at mid-court after the timeout, but didn't, so our boys were forced to inbound it underneath the Warriors' basket. Winn took the inbounds pass with 8 seconds left and dribbled through a full court press as time wound down. Winn has, without question, has the most basketball sense of any player on the team. He dribbled up the left side of the court, then drove to the foul lane, where he was double teamed. He calmly spun, completely aware of how much time was left on the clock - about 2 seconds - and passed the ball to Cullen on the right baseline. Cullen caught the ball and, with no hesitation, put up an 8-footer as time expired.
Swish. I knew the ball was going in as soon as it left his hand and it did. 'Dores with by 1! The players on the bench mobbed the players on the floor and crowd, as they say, went wild. The referees walked off the court, shaking their heads in admiration, knowing they had been part of a special game. Chris raised his hands in jubilation, looked at me and smiled, then began congratulating the boys. It was a win for the ages and one I'll always remember.
The final line on Wes, according to my scorebook, was 16 points and 13 or 14 rebounds. A double-double, the first I can remember any of our players having. Just a tremendous, winning effort.
What a night.
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