MABEN — Danny Crawford had a feeling about his West Oktibbeha County High School boys basketball team.
Even though the Timberwolves only have eight players, Crawford knew his team’s size on the front line would serve it well as it made a playoff push in the second half of the season.
But Crawford, a former basketball player at Mary Holmes College in West Point and at Rust College in Holly Springs, decided to see for himself, so he took the court to test Tyrone and Tyshon Spencer, Lysanius Ford, Jimmie Bonds, and JaQuante Bell in a scrimmage after the Christmas break. Plenty of poking and prodding ensued as Crawford gaged his players’ willingness to mix it up and get physical down low. What he saw from each of the players made him even more confident the Timberwolves could extend their season into the month of March.
West Oktibbeha took two big steps last week to make Crawford’s vision a reality. First, West Oktibbeha rallied from a seven-point deficit in the final three minutes to beat East Oktibbeha 72-71. West Oktibbeha then made history Friday night when Terry Tate hit the game-winning shot in a 72-71 victory against West Lowndes in the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 1A, Region 5 title game at West Lowndes High in Columbus. The victory helped West Oktibbeha (17-12) secure the first region title in school history in its final year of existence. West and East Oktibbeha County high schools will be incorporated into the Starkville School District for the 2015-16 school year.
In addition to Tate, Tyrone, and Tyshon Spencer played integral roles in helping the Timberwolves make history. Tyson and Tyrone had 22 points in the victory against East Oktibbeha. Tyshon Spencer added a game-high 20 against West Lowndes.
For their accomplishments, Tyrone and Tyshon Spencer and Tate are The Dispatch’s Prep Players of the Week.
“I am a huge believer in if we do the right thing at the beginning, we’re going to get the right result at the end,” Crawford said. “This is the result of doing the right thing and working hard.”
The Spencers and Tate will try to continue their magic at 7 tonight when West Oktibbeha plays host to Dexter in the opening round of the Class 1A State tournament.
Tate, an eighth-grader, missed a potential game-winning shot earlier in the season against West Lowndes. He said that miss wasn’t on his mind in the latest meeting against the Panthers. He said he took the confidence Crawford has instilled in him and used it to make the shot that helped the team make history.
“I was in a great position to hit the shot,” Tate said. “The only thing I could look at was the clocks, so I just hit the baseline and threw it up to the backboard and it went in.”
Before that shot, though, Tyshon and Tyrone recalled the practice after Christmas when Crawford took the court and tested them. Tyshon, a 6-4 junior, said Crawford was “solid” and hard to move off the post. He couldn’t help laugh when asked if Crawford, who was a 6-4 post player when he played, had skills.
“A little bit,” Tyshon said as he held his thumb and forefinger apart just enough so daylight came between them.
Tyrone, a 6-6 senior, credited Crawford for teaching him a lot of post moves and for pushing him hard in practice and in games to improve. He feels his improvement, especially with a jump hook, and the maturation of the team has allowed everyone to shine.
Crawford said Tyrone’s jumping ability and his quickness on the blocks makes him tough to guard.
“He is great at it,” Crawford said of Tyrone’s hook shot. “That is what makes Tyrone so special. We rarely run an offensive set for him. He gets his off the boards. He rebounds unbelievably.”
Tyrone had three offensive rebounds putbacks in the final three minutes, while Tyshon had two in that same stretch. Tyrone’s final basket came with 6.5 seconds remaining to set up a wild finish that saw East Oktibbeha’s Travion Arnold have a 12-foot jump shot go in and out just before the final buzzer.
“We look out for one another and stay hard and never give up on anybody,” said Tyrone, who said he and his brother are honoring their mother, Shelia, who played basketball at Maben High. Shelia died in 2007.
Crawford admitted he pushed and bumped Tyrone the most during the scrimmage in an effort to make him mad. He said he was “extremely sore” from dealing with Tyrone after the practice.
Opponents of the Timberwolves are familiar with that feeling. West Oktibbeha’s ability to pound the backboards and have so many contributors has fueled their history-making season. All three players and Crawford hope the latest two victories are just the beginning for the team that wants to make a statement in the school’s final run.
“It feels good,” said Tyson, who transferred with his brother from Starkville High to East Oktibbeha before landing at West Oktibbeha. “It feels good to win and make history.
“I wish we did have another year, but we did make history, and I would like to see the school be here for another year so I can graduate from here.
“Everybody wants it bad. Everybody wants to go to Jackson. Everybody is just hungry. Everybody wants to eat.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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