Boys' Basketball
Monday, March 15, 2010
Tigers draw Tyner in state tournament tip off game
Tigers draw Tyner in state tournament tip off game
By Anthony S. Puca
Marshall County Tribune
Prior to the first number being drawn at the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association’s (TSSAA) boys state tournament draw in Murfreesboro Saturday morning, Marshall County head basketball coach Jason Tigert stated that he wanted to play first, but it did not matter who his opponent was.
“This is as strong a Double ‘A’ field as we have seen in recent history,” said Tigert .
“I don’t think we have a preference on who we play. We would love to play the Wednesday game early.”
The TSSAA put a new wrinkle in the process for the first time this year, allowing each coach to come up and choose the number that they wanted in the hopper.
Tigert chose his lucky number 4 and with the first spin in Class AA by Holt Gillespie, young son of TSSAA Executive Director Matthew Gillespie, came the number six Tyner Academy Bears from Chattanooga (24-6).
Gillespie and his young partner, Chase Melton fired up the spinning wheel again and out came number four, matching Tigert and his Tigers (26-5) with Tyner in Wednesday’s kick-off game of the TSSAA Farm Bureau Insurance Boys Basketball Championships at 5:00 p.m. at the Murphy Center on the campus of MTSU in Murfreesboro.
Tigert had gotten what he wanted and said afterwards, “Lucky number four maybe, we’ll find out.”
Tigert added, “That first game is nice. If you are fortunate enough to win the game you get a chance to sit back and scout some folks.”
Asked why number four was his choice, Tigert smiled and said, “It’s my favorite number. Just going back a long time, I don’t know why. I have always liked the number four, so that’s what I went with.”
Reminded that Kedren Johnson poured in a career high 44 points after changing from his familiar No. 1 to a No. 4 jersey during the region title game after getting blood on it, Tigert laughed and said, “How about that, there you go. Now you know why four is my lucky number.”
The number seven ranked Tigers take on a Bears team that was overlooked by the pollsters the entire season, never making the AP Top 10.
Tyner sported a 17-6 regular season record before ripping off a seven-game winning streak at the most important time of the season and in the process captured the District 6-AA title and the Region 3-AA title by beating second ranked Howard in both championship contests after losing two out of three to the Hustlin' Tigers in the regular season.
Howard (26-4) also qualified for the state tournament after going on the road and defeating Livingston Academy in a sectional game.
Tyner head coach Gerald Harris said, “We have had a fantastic year. We have had a great run. We won the district, we won the region, and we won the sub-state. We haven’t been here since ‘96’. It’s a special moment for me, because I graduated from here and this is my alma mater.”
Howard will be in the opposite bracket of the Tigers and Bears and will face number five-ranked Liberty Tech Magnet (27-8) in the first round on Thursday morning.
Tigert will not underestimate or overlook anyone at this point and said about Tyner, “I probably know the least amount about Tyner then any team in the tournament, so we have got some homework to do. I know they are big.”
Big they are, and talented and as healthy as they have been all season with the return of senior swingman and North Carolina A&T signee senior Thomas Cooper (6-foot-4), who broke his foot earlier in the season and did not return until the final minutes of their sectional game win over York.
In the front line are two other big men in 6-9 UConn signee Michael Bradley and 6-6 college prospect Reggie Gilmore.
Tigert is confident that the Tigers can play with anyone and said about the height disadvantage, “We can win in a number of ways. We have played against big folks and some big guards this year. We have a versatile team that I think can match-up with teams on any given night.”
On the other bench, Harris has his own worries, mainly the defense of Class AA Mr. Basketball finalist Kedren Johnson, who has been spectacular in the post-season.
“I know they (MCHS) are good and I know they can score,” said Harris. “I know they have a great point guard in Johnson. Marshall County has been very good over the years.”
Johnson will certainly draw a myriad of attention in Murfreesboro next week from future collegiate suitors and Harris also plans on giving some extra attention to the junior sensation on the court.
“All year we have been playing great defense and that is one of the reasons why we have been so successful,” said Harris. “We will mix it up and throw a couple of things at him and see where it goes. It’s like all good players. You can hold him for so long and hope that he works for every shot. We will be keeping a close eye on him everywhere he goes.”
The Tigers will be returning to Murfreesboro for the first time since the 2001-2002 seasons and Tigert is aware that the spring break period in Marshall County schools may affect the student section crowd on Wednesday.
Tigert said, “It may actually hurt the student section because some of the kids may have had plans. Either way. We know a big crowd from Marshall County will come out to support us. Our guys are just excited to be here. We are going to give it our best effort whether we are playing in front of a packed house or an empty gym.”
By Anthony S. Puca
Marshall County Tribune
Prior to the first number being drawn at the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association’s (TSSAA) boys state tournament draw in Murfreesboro Saturday morning, Marshall County head basketball coach Jason Tigert stated that he wanted to play first, but it did not matter who his opponent was.
“This is as strong a Double ‘A’ field as we have seen in recent history,” said Tigert .
“I don’t think we have a preference on who we play. We would love to play the Wednesday game early.”
The TSSAA put a new wrinkle in the process for the first time this year, allowing each coach to come up and choose the number that they wanted in the hopper.
Tigert chose his lucky number 4 and with the first spin in Class AA by Holt Gillespie, young son of TSSAA Executive Director Matthew Gillespie, came the number six Tyner Academy Bears from Chattanooga (24-6).
Gillespie and his young partner, Chase Melton fired up the spinning wheel again and out came number four, matching Tigert and his Tigers (26-5) with Tyner in Wednesday’s kick-off game of the TSSAA Farm Bureau Insurance Boys Basketball Championships at 5:00 p.m. at the Murphy Center on the campus of MTSU in Murfreesboro.
Tigert had gotten what he wanted and said afterwards, “Lucky number four maybe, we’ll find out.”
Tigert added, “That first game is nice. If you are fortunate enough to win the game you get a chance to sit back and scout some folks.”
Asked why number four was his choice, Tigert smiled and said, “It’s my favorite number. Just going back a long time, I don’t know why. I have always liked the number four, so that’s what I went with.”
Reminded that Kedren Johnson poured in a career high 44 points after changing from his familiar No. 1 to a No. 4 jersey during the region title game after getting blood on it, Tigert laughed and said, “How about that, there you go. Now you know why four is my lucky number.”
The number seven ranked Tigers take on a Bears team that was overlooked by the pollsters the entire season, never making the AP Top 10.
Tyner sported a 17-6 regular season record before ripping off a seven-game winning streak at the most important time of the season and in the process captured the District 6-AA title and the Region 3-AA title by beating second ranked Howard in both championship contests after losing two out of three to the Hustlin' Tigers in the regular season.
Howard (26-4) also qualified for the state tournament after going on the road and defeating Livingston Academy in a sectional game.
Tyner head coach Gerald Harris said, “We have had a fantastic year. We have had a great run. We won the district, we won the region, and we won the sub-state. We haven’t been here since ‘96’. It’s a special moment for me, because I graduated from here and this is my alma mater.”
Howard will be in the opposite bracket of the Tigers and Bears and will face number five-ranked Liberty Tech Magnet (27-8) in the first round on Thursday morning.
Tigert will not underestimate or overlook anyone at this point and said about Tyner, “I probably know the least amount about Tyner then any team in the tournament, so we have got some homework to do. I know they are big.”
Big they are, and talented and as healthy as they have been all season with the return of senior swingman and North Carolina A&T signee senior Thomas Cooper (6-foot-4), who broke his foot earlier in the season and did not return until the final minutes of their sectional game win over York.
In the front line are two other big men in 6-9 UConn signee Michael Bradley and 6-6 college prospect Reggie Gilmore.
Tigert is confident that the Tigers can play with anyone and said about the height disadvantage, “We can win in a number of ways. We have played against big folks and some big guards this year. We have a versatile team that I think can match-up with teams on any given night.”
On the other bench, Harris has his own worries, mainly the defense of Class AA Mr. Basketball finalist Kedren Johnson, who has been spectacular in the post-season.
“I know they (MCHS) are good and I know they can score,” said Harris. “I know they have a great point guard in Johnson. Marshall County has been very good over the years.”
Johnson will certainly draw a myriad of attention in Murfreesboro next week from future collegiate suitors and Harris also plans on giving some extra attention to the junior sensation on the court.
“All year we have been playing great defense and that is one of the reasons why we have been so successful,” said Harris. “We will mix it up and throw a couple of things at him and see where it goes. It’s like all good players. You can hold him for so long and hope that he works for every shot. We will be keeping a close eye on him everywhere he goes.”
The Tigers will be returning to Murfreesboro for the first time since the 2001-2002 seasons and Tigert is aware that the spring break period in Marshall County schools may affect the student section crowd on Wednesday.
Tigert said, “It may actually hurt the student section because some of the kids may have had plans. Either way. We know a big crowd from Marshall County will come out to support us. Our guys are just excited to be here. We are going to give it our best effort whether we are playing in front of a packed house or an empty gym.”
