How Rossview dunked way to semifinals in first TSSAA boys basketball state tournament
Jacob ShamesMURFREESBORO — You only get one chance at a first impression. Landon Hankemeier and his team made the most of it Wednesday.
Two minutes into Rossview's Class 4A TSSAA boys basketball state tournament quarterfinal against Morristown East, Hankemeier flashed toward the 3-point line and caught a pass from Jiyair Rose. With a bit of help from a screen by Quamond Linsey, Hankemeier got the step on his defender, took one dribble and rose for a posterizing right-handed tomahawk.
Thirty minutes of game time and three dunks later, the Hawks had sealed a 64-43 win over the Hurricanes in their first TSSAA state tournament game. Rossview (25-9) will face Independence (31-6) in the semifinals Friday at Middle Tennessee State's Murphy Center.
Hankemeier scored 14 points and was one of four Hawks in double figures. Cameryn Ward led the way with 16 points, including back-to-back fast-break slams in the third quarter, and Linsey and Jacob Edwards both added 12 points.
Hankemeier, a 6-foot-4 senior who was named District 13-4A Most Valuable Player, helped put the game away with an alley-oop from Ward midway through the fourth quarter.
"(My vertical jump) was 34 (inches) when I got it checked out," Hankemeier said. "But it was off of some high pads, so you know how that is."
Edwards has had what he calls "a very bad case of missing dunks" for most of his career. Sure, the 6-3 senior can jump out of the gym in practice, but he's had trouble translating that to games. On Wednesday, he couldn't finish off a pair of would-be posters in the second half.
However, he promised he'd have one before the end of the state tournament, likely off a lob from Ward or Linsey.
"It's like in-game, I just try to break the rim," Edwards said. "I try to dunk too hard all the time."
Of course, Rossview wouldn't be here if dunking was the only thing to Hankemeier, Edwards or Ward's games.
Edwards puts up 16.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.8 steals and 1.1 blocks per game while shooting 55 percent from the field and 39 percent from three. Hankemeier's average stat line is almost a mirror image: 16.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.2 blocks on 56 percent shooting. Last season, the duo averaged 9.0 and 10.3 points, respectively.
Their ascension has let Ward, last season's district MVP, focus on what he does best: defense. The 6-2 senior averages 13.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.6 steals and 0.8 blocks and helped hold Morristown East star Kyle Cloninger to 17 points on 6-of-15 shooting, eight points below his season average.
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"(Edwards and Hankemeier) have stepped up the scoring load and let (Ward) do the dirty work and them do the pretty work," said Rossview coach Johnny Jackson. "But they're talented, they're inside-out guys. ... This year, we asked them to play inside where they're really more perimeter guys, but they've accepted their role tremendously."
The Hurricanes' game is behind the arc — Cloninger is one of three who came to Murfreesboro having hit at least 70 3-pointers. Jackson thought the Hawks tried to match it in the first half by shooting out-of-rhythm, NBA-range treys, contributing to a disjointed start.
But once Rossview began playing its game, Morristown East couldn't match. The Hawks forced 17 giveaways from the Hurricanes, outrebounded them 38-34 and held them to 29 percent shooting — and just 23 percent from three.
"I don't think we've had a team of this nucleus," Jackson said. "These guys are super athletic, super talented, and they're all uncommitted. I think they just boosted their stock big-time today."
Jacob Shames can be reached by email at jshames@gannett.com and on Twitter @Jacob_Shames.