Well tonight was a special moment for the kids of my school. As many of you have gathered, I teach in the rural SC area...80+% of my school is on free/reduced lunch and the kids live lives many of us could not comprehend. They are great kids who really have a strike, and sometimes two, already against them before they ever get a chance.
Tonight was one for the kids. The basketball team does not have a superstar. It is a team of kids who have found a coach to believe in...a coach who makes them practice at 6am every day before school and for hours after school, a coach who does not accept excuses or anything less than perfect behavior in school, a coach who molded a team of kids nobody would have ever thought would be basketball players into a team playing for the Lower State Championship, and a coach who plays up to sixteen kids on his roster every game, a coach they love to HATE but RESPECT to no end.
All of the hard love lessons and endless practices paid off tonight.
Against a perennial state powerhouse and a legendary coach from a legendary family, including an NBA coach brother, the kids overcame adversity.
Overtime. Down by 2. 5 seconds to go. The ball is inbounded and rushed upcourt by a 6'4" Junior swingman with a history of temper issues and a home situation you would not wish on anyone...
He pulls up prematurely and against the screams of the crowd with 2 seconds left...he is at least 5 feet outside of the 3 point line.
It was one of those shots you knew was going in...as soon as it left his hand, everyone knew. The buzzer sounded at the same time the shot swished through the net....
Score one for the underdogs. This moment belonged to those who do not get the spotlight very often.
Tonight was one for the kids. The basketball team does not have a superstar. It is a team of kids who have found a coach to believe in...a coach who makes them practice at 6am every day before school and for hours after school, a coach who does not accept excuses or anything less than perfect behavior in school, a coach who molded a team of kids nobody would have ever thought would be basketball players into a team playing for the Lower State Championship, and a coach who plays up to sixteen kids on his roster every game, a coach they love to HATE but RESPECT to no end.
All of the hard love lessons and endless practices paid off tonight.
Against a perennial state powerhouse and a legendary coach from a legendary family, including an NBA coach brother, the kids overcame adversity.
Overtime. Down by 2. 5 seconds to go. The ball is inbounded and rushed upcourt by a 6'4" Junior swingman with a history of temper issues and a home situation you would not wish on anyone...
He pulls up prematurely and against the screams of the crowd with 2 seconds left...he is at least 5 feet outside of the 3 point line.
It was one of those shots you knew was going in...as soon as it left his hand, everyone knew. The buzzer sounded at the same time the shot swished through the net....
Score one for the underdogs. This moment belonged to those who do not get the spotlight very often.