The real truth on the Bearden/WB game comes out

[HTV]

In Chuck Cavalaris' "Ask Chuck" column in the Knoxville News-Sentinel this morning that game is discussed.

 

The truth is that Bearden missed its first shot, then hit 18 in a row. They were 44 of 52 (85%) for the game, all 14 Bulldogs scored, and they didn't press after the first half ended. They played man to man defense - not the trapping zone press that was claimed earlier.

 

The Bulldog's best player - Jeremy Holliday - played the first quarter and the first 3 minutes of the second quarter, and never saw the court after that.

 

Those are the facts, and they don't add up to anything unsportsmanlike, unethical, or demeaning to the players.

[GovMan]

You'd better get your facts right before you get on here and start spouting them.

 

No once did I claim they ran a trapping zone press the entire game. What I did claim, and what is TRUE, is that they pressed man to man the entire game and yes, even in that press, they drop off and trap.

 

Were you at the game, HTV?

 

They never dropped off and played half-court defense during the game. And those are facts.

 

Since writing the first reply to HTV earlier, I had a chance to read the column in the Sentinal. Now ... I call into question not only Coach Blevins's sportsmanship, but his honesty also.

 

There are several hundred people that were at the game, both WB and Bearden fans alike, that will refute his quoted statement, "We did not press after the first half." THAT IS NOT TRUE. Coach Blevins can try to play with words to make himself look a little better, but he has to lay his head on the pillow at night and go to sleep and he knows the truth.

 

His method of pressing might have changed after the first half, but a "man" full court press is still a press. You can play man and pick up at half court. As for the talent rotation, that's not exactly honest either. Sure, he runs more people in and out of the game than anyone I've ever saw, and sure he left Holiday out, but he still had starting caliber players in the game at the the end and jv caliber players on the bench.

 

It's not worth arguing anymore, but guys ... it's all on tape. To say they did not press the second half is a lie.

Edited January 18, 2004 by GovMan

[2Hot4U]

I totally support William Blount on this one. Coach Blevins is classless and he will do anything to cover his back side up.

 

Here at South Doyle when we beat - he didn't shake hands with anyone, he just stormed off the court. Is this a true sign of a good coach? The only reason everybody thinks that he is a great coach, is b/c he has the best talent around year in and year out. I remember when he was the girls coach at South Doyle and only won like 5 games for the year - so I guess maybe since he went to Bearden and got all that talent he figured out how to coach.

 

Remember, TALENT = GREAT COACHES! EVERYTIME!

 

Lastly, two years in a row, the Bearden program has been bruised in January and February, when will their support dwindle and people start realizing that Blevins needs to go. He needs to go back to Bluefield College or back to Johnson County, or wherever he came from.

 

I bet the new principal at Bearden doesn't like seeing her schools name flashed across the sports section and her coach having to defend himself for running up the score on somebody. She buy his story, but Coach Blevins all the other people see right through you - you are classless.

[BHSfootball]

I totally support William Blount on this one. Coach Blevins is classless and he will do anything to cover his back side up.

 

Here at South Doyle when we beat - he didn't shake hands with anyone, he just stormed off the court. Is this a true sign of a good coach? The only reason everybody thinks that he is a great coach, is b/c he has the best talent around year in and year out. I remember when he was the girls coach at South Doyle and only won like 5 games for the year - so I guess maybe since he went to Bearden and got all that talent he figured out how to coach.

 

Remember, TALENT = GREAT COACHES! EVERYTIME!

 

Lastly, two years in a row, the Bearden program has been bruised in January and February, when will their support dwindle and people start realizing that Blevins needs to go. He needs to go back to Bluefield College or back to Johnson County, or wherever he came from.

 

I bet the new principal at Bearden doesn't like seeing her schools name flashed across the sports section and her coach having to defend himself for running up the score on somebody. She buy his story, but Coach Blevins all the other people see right through you - you are classless.

You have no idea what you are talking about, and really, you are an idiot. Talent does not equal good coaching. I see the only reason that Bearden isn't somewhere around .500 this year is because of Blevins. They have two guys over 6'2" and that's it. This year's team is also lacking in athletic ability compared to many of the preceding teams. the reason Bearden is good year in and year out is because of Blevins. You can't deny it. I know every guy on the basketball team and very few have the ability to play in college. He coaches these boys up, and that is why they are good. NOT TALENT.

 

And I don't like what the way he has treated some of our players, but he is still a very good coach.

 

You are ignorant and need to get a grasp on reality.

[WaCoJaCo]

Just a thought.....

 

Maybe the William Blount coach should do a better job of coaching his players to play defense. 85% for the game? You want see two many games where a team can do that from the foul line!

 

Bearden didn't run the score up......William Blount did.

[mas1821]

I get tired of seeing ppl whine about running the score up.... It's a game... One team wins, one team loses.... If you can't handle the outcome don't play to begin with.... It's like all of you are expecting the opposing coach to pity you! That's asenine...

[HTV]

No, I wasn't at the game, but I do know Chuck Cavalaris. He checks his facts before he writes a column.

 

Powell's girls beat Carter Friday night 95-25. Do you see Carter supporters whining about it on the girl's basketball forum? I don't.

 

Again, quit your whining. Move on to something else.

[fatjoe8]

You have no idea what you are talking about, and really, you are an idiot. Talent does not equal good coaching. I see the only reason that Bearden isn't somewhere around .500 this year is because of Blevins. They have two guys over 6'2" and that's it. This year's team is also lacking in athletic ability compared to many of the preceding teams. the reason Bearden is good year in and year out is because of Blevins. You can't deny it. I know every guy on the basketball team and very few have the ability to play in college. He coaches these boys up, and that is why they are good. NOT TALENT.

 

Wow Bearden poster--this is an insightful and unique post. Lets disect this.

1) they have 2 guys over 6'2 and thats it

Well since you're slamming a South Doyle poster, lets take S-D for example.

Of their first 7 players in the rotation, there is only ONE guy over 6'2

2) Lacking in athletic ability - well S-D could qualify for that on several fronts

3) On S-D, very few have the ability to play in college

 

and 4) oh... Bearden lost to S-D

 

So... does this mean Coach Smith is better than bleavins. I think it does. Thanks for the complement on Coach Smith. he will appreciate it.

the Cherokees won 6 games in the 2 seasons before Coach Smith got there, and right now they are 15-6. Not bad, not bad. So again, I agree with you that Coach SMith is the man!

[Pudding]

sounds like Coach Blevins is hiding behind the definition and people's perception of the word "press". Sounds like Clinton and the defintion of the word "is". but, personally, so what if he did run it up, what comes around goes around.

[GovMan]

No, I wasn't at the game, but I do know Chuck Cavalaris. He checks his facts before he writes a column.

 

Powell's girls beat Carter Friday night 95-25. Do you see Carter supporters whining about it on the girl's basketball forum? I don't.

 

Again, quit your whining. Move on to something else.

I WAS at the game ... front and center. If Blevins wants to hide behind his definition of what a press if ... so be it. When I played, if you guarded the other team all 96 ft of the floor, from the inbounds pass to the other end, we called it a press.

 

I think Blevins realizes now what a bush-league thing he did and he's trying to use semantics to escape blame.

 

If you weren't at the game ... I don't want to hear anything. For those who were, they know for Coach Blevins to claim he didn't press the second half is totally without merit and completely ludicrous.

 

If everyone would be honest, Cavalaris will get hundreds of emails and calls this week disputing Coach Blevins's claims. From WB and Bearden alike.

[BHSfootball]

Wow Bearden poster--this is an insightful and unique post. Lets disect this.

1) they have 2 guys over 6'2 and thats it

Well since you're slamming a South Doyle poster, lets take S-D for example.

Of their first 7 players in the rotation, there is only ONE guy over 6'2

2) Lacking in athletic ability - well S-D could qualify for that on several fronts

3) On S-D, very few have the ability to play in college

 

and 4) oh... Bearden lost to S-D

 

So... does this mean Coach Smith is better than bleavins. I think it does. Thanks for the complement on Coach Smith. he will appreciate it.

the Cherokees won 6 games in the 2 seasons before Coach Smith got there, and right now they are 15-6. Not bad, not bad. So again, I agree with you that Coach SMith is the man!

How many district championships does Coach Smith have? How about state appearances? How about region wins?

 

and oh.....the S-D game was a fluke. We'll see you at home. Then we'll pay attention to districts and see who makes it further.

[BHSfootball]

After reading that article, I am dumbfounded by how out of hand that game really was. There were guys for Bearden in double digits that normally see the court less than 10 minutes a game. I amazed that you guys would claim that Blevins was running up the score. Because he certainly was not doing it with that crew in there. Those guys are mop-up duty players. If William Blount would allow those guys to score like that, then I definitely think the were deserving of that score.

 

 

 

The "press" you refer to is Bearden's full-court man-to-man hard press. Its a man coverage, but its tightest on the guy with the ball. So if two guys are near the ball-handler, the guy not actually guarding him is lax on his man and helping ot trap the ball-carrier. That is what Bearden does.

Edited January 18, 2004 by BHSfootball