Phenom - Let's Play Basketball Page 16

The Boys State Championship in Wisconsin is a single elimination tournament for all public schools. There are no classes or divisions, small schools are in the same tournament as large schools. With 1,000 kids, Shorewood High School was considered a good-sized school, but not as large as some. Waukesha, for example, had over 2,300 students. The state was divided into eight sections, with the winners advancing to the three-day state championship in Madison. Each section was in turn divided into divisions.

  We won our first three games easily and advanced to the sectional semi-finals where we faced Waukesha. The boys had waited a long time to get another crack at the team that was still undefeated and ranked #1 in the state. I tried to tell them that Waukesha would be a formidable opponent and that we would need to play our best basketball. They listened, but didn’t hear.

  I put Matthew on Rappis, their point guard, the quarterback of their team. I figured that if we took the ball out of his hands Waukesha would have difficulty running their offense and getting the ball to Burke. Unfortunately, they anticipated this and let their small forward, Steve Hyatt, direct their attack and by the end of the high scoring first quarter Waukesha led 26-22. Burke had 11 points and Hyatt eight. Worse, Matthew drew two quick fouls trying to help out on defense and then picked up his third foul just before the quarter ended. I had no choice, but to sit him down.

  “Boys, the rest of you need to step it up. We can’t let them get too far ahead.”

  “Coach, Burke and Hyatt are really shooting well. Why not try a triangle and two?” Seth suggested.

  I thought for a moment and decided against it. I hated gimmick defenses, because they had an inherent flaw; they assumed that your team wasn’t able to beat the other team without trickery. Playing Burke and Hyatt man-to-man while the other three defenders played a three-man zone made some sense, but I decided to keep that as a last resort. “No, I want to play the same man-to-man basketball that we have played the last two months. The second team is going to start the 2nd quarter. Let’s pressure them on defense and hustle for loose balls and rebounds. We’ll see if they can keep shooting well when they are tired.” It was risky, but we needed to change the pace of the game. “Okay, let’s show them what we have,” I implored as we broke the huddle.

  The next four minutes were helter-skelter basketball at its best, Kevin, Andy, Erin and the other subs never stopped running and you could see the fast pace of the game was beginning to take a toll on the Waukesha players. They normally did not substitute much, but today their coach was forced to go to his bench early and often. When Burke went to the bench at the five-minute mark, I put our starters back in. The fifteen hundred Shorewood fans that made the 50-mile trip gave the subs a standing ovation. The starters kept up the pressure and by halftime we enjoyed a four-point lead.

  My halftime speech was brief. “Matthew is back, but we’re going to keep playing the same way. They are tired, so we’ll keep up the full court pressure. Let’s see if they have worked as hard at conditioning as we have.” I was confident as we headed out for the second half.

  My confidence lasted only thirty seconds, which is how long it took Matthew to pick up his fourth foul. I was shocked with the call and got a technical foul for my opinion. “The player has to have enough room to turn around,” I screamed. All I got for my efforts was a view of the refs back and a technical foul. Matthew had rebounded a missed Waukesha shot and turned to run up court. Rappis planted himself right behind Matthew and flopped dramatically when Matthew turned. It was a set-up, but the ref bought the act. I had to sit Matthew and save him for the fourth quarter.

  “Okay, boys, we need to do it again, just like the first half.”

  They tried their best, but I could see they were demoralized. Like most race horses, kids have one burst in them, but seldom can they get knocked off stride and then pick it up a second time. We ended the third quarter down by 10 points. I looked down the bench at Matthew who nodded as if to say; “It’s up to me now.”

  Matthew took charge in the fourth quarter. Forced to play outside on the perimeter to avoid his fifth foul, he made shot after shot from behind the three-point line. His last three shots were from 28 feet, well beyond the NBA 3-point line. The Waukesha players kept trying to force Matthew into a 5th foul, but he avoided even the appearance of a foul. We were up by seven when Matthew decided to take some risks and started taking the ball to the basket for thunderous dunks. He also started to rebound and play aggressive defense. The score was 94–78 when the horn sounded, putting Waukesha out of their misery, but the final score was misleading. I knew we had dodged a bullet.

  The next evening we qualified for State with an easy 22 point victory against Milwaukee Lincoln, an inner city school that won the Milwaukee city conference with a 13-1 record. They were quick, but could not match our intensity on the backboards. One 2nd quarter play exemplified the game. Their all-conference guard came down one-on-one against Matthew. He burst to the right and juked Matthew with a between the legs dribble as he crossed over to his left hand and went up for the layup. That was the plan. His only problem was that Matthew stole the ball when he went between his legs and started a fast break the other way, finishing it off with a spectacular two handed dunk. The crowd and players knew the game was as good as over. We were on our way to the State Championship in Madison.

 

  The SAT saga is what I remember most about Matthew during that fabulous year at Shorewood High School. It had nothing to do with basketball, but he was never more competitive. It started at the weekly pep rally that had become the focal point of the school week for many students and quite a few teachers as well. Basketball was almost over and baseball in Wisconsin was still a couple months away. It was a dead time for sports. What would Matthew do next?

  The journey began in the second phase of the pep tally. “My name is Matthew Wilson and I am a student at Shorewood High School, and while I am a student, I Kick Ass.” The 1,800 students and teachers shouted the ‘I kick ass’ refrain in unison and then waited as Matthew hesitated while looking around the auditorium.

  “The scores on our college entrance exams suck,” he screamed. The room became silent as everyone was taken aback by the vehemence of the message and his language. “We are supposed to be smart kids, but last year’s test scores are no better than the national average. This school was in the 65th percentile on the ACT and only 62% on the SAT last year. The next SAT test date appeared on the screen, April 23, less than one month away. “Juniors and seniors, be prepared, we are going to ace this test. Sophomores, I encourage you to take the test. There will be some materials that you haven’t covered, but it will help you next year.”

  “Teachers, we need your help. Everyone will be assigned to a study group and we need mentors for each group to answer questions, administer practice tests and go through the lesson plans. Principal Hawkins will coordinate the mentor program.”

  “We start today. Our guest speaker is Doctor Arthur Gammons, co-author of the Princeton Study Guide. Let’s give a big kick-ass welcome to Dr. Gammons.”

  Sixty seconds later the applause, foot stomping and ‘we kick ass’ chants died down and Dr. Gammons could begin. “It is truly an honor to be here and address such motivated students. Matthew promised me you would be eager listeners and I see now what he meant. Let’s begin. Let me give you a little background. As most of you know, the SAT and the ACT tests are the two standardized testing tools that colleges and universities use to determine whom will be admitted to their schools. Don’t underestimate the importance of these tests to your future. It is more important than grade point and class ranking for most schools. Getting into a good school is the first step in being successful later in life.” The auditorium was quiet. Dr. Hawkins had their full attention.

  “Many of you have taken these tests before. The ACT (American College Testing Program) has been around since 1959 and is popular in the Midwest.

  We are going to take the SAT, the Scholastic Aptitude Test, which is preferr
ed by most schools. The SAT has three sections; each is scored on a scale of 200 to 800.

  SAT Format

  Writing (200-800) – average score 510

  Math (200-800) – average score 520

  Critical Reading (200-800) – average score - 505

  Total average score - 1,538 points.

  Better schools require a minimum score of 2,100 which puts you in the 90th percentile. A perfect score is 2,400 points. Only 20 students received a perfect score last year; 20 out of one million. The next testing date is April 23.

  I want to make one more, important point. There are ways to study for these tests that will help you improve your score, but in the final analysis, it comes down to each individual. It is up to each of you to put in the necessary work. Good luck.”

  Matthew took the microphone. “Thank you Dr. Gammons. Fellow students at Shorewood High School, I challenge you to ace this test. Are you with me?” he shouted to the crowd.

  “Yes,” the students answered in unison.

  “How will we do on April 23?” Matthew asked again, waiting for the response he knew was coming.

  “We’ll kick ass!” the students roared as one.

  Kohl Stadium, home of the Wisconsin Badgers currently ranked #9 in the nation, was the venue for this year’s State Championship tournament. The 17,000 seat arena was sold out for all three days, including 2,000 tickets sold to Shorewood students and fans. I was told the entire student body was making the trip. The three day tournament started with four games Thursday with the finals held Saturday evening. We were the fourth game on Thursday, which, barring overtime in the first three games, was scheduled to start at 9:30 PM, an hour and a half later than our normal game time. This was an issue that I needed to address.

  Wednesday afternoon we held a one-hour practice to get acclimated to the floor and shooting environment. The background behind the baskets and depth perception in a large arena is completely different than in a small gym. The kids had to get the feel for their shots. They had to overcome the awe of playing in an arena that they had seen only on TV. I could tell them this was just another game, but they wouldn’t believe me. This was the game of their lives.

  Thursday I was up at six worrying about the game and our late start. The kids slept until nine or ten as if this was just any other day. I needn’t have worried about their lack of sleep. Instead, I worried about them sitting around all day with nothing to do, so at three PM I scheduled a walk-through practice in the hotel conference room. After an hour, we began working on out of bounds plays.

  “Erin, who do you throw to if they play zone when you take the ball out of bounds under your own basket?”

  “I’m not sure, Coach, but we are going to throw you in bed and tie you down if you don’t relax. You’re driving us crazy.” The boys were still laughing as I headed to my room.

  We got to the field house at 7:30 to watch a little bit of the game between Eau Claire and Oshkosh. Assuming we won tonight, we would play the winner on Friday and it didn’t take me long to see we would have our hands full. Both teams were tall and played a physical game. Oshkosh was ahead by seven at the end of the third quarter when I took my team to the locker room.

  “Oshkosh is going to be a tough opponent tomorrow,” Osteen said as they were getting dressed.

  “Don’t be looking ahead,” I almost shouted, “we have a tough game tonight.” The laughter told me they had baited me again. I just hoped we were not over confident.

  I need not have worried. Sheboygan Falls had a nice team, but we played one of our best games of the year. Rodney scored 22 points and all five starters were in double figures. I was also able to rest my starters for almost the entire fourth quarter which could be important Saturday.

  “Nice game, boys,” I said as I looked at the final charts. “We had 26 assists on 32 baskets, that’s awesome teamwork.”

  “Tomorrow we do the same to Oshkosh,” Rodney said.

  “Let’s not take them lightly,” I warned. “You saw how big they are.”

  I was up early again Friday despite not getting the boys into their rooms until after 2:00 AM. Even then we were kept awake by ‘we kick ass’ chants from the 2,000 Shorewood fans that were parked outside our hotel. Most of the kids slept until noon, but appeared groggy at lunch.

  “Matthew, do you think they’ll be ready tonight?” I asked.

  “I think so, Coach. The adrenalin will kick in and we should be okay tonight; its tomorrow that we need to worry about.”

  We opened up with a full court press to keep the ball away from the Oshkosh big men. The strategy worked as we forced several early turnovers and jumped out to a 12 point lead after the first quarter. “Second team, keep up the pressure,” I pleaded as I rested my starters to start the second quarter. We were up by 18 points when I put our starters back in at the four minute mark. Matthew hit a couple long jumpers and we increased our lead to 24 points at halftime.

  “Nice half, boys, but we can’t let up. Let’s jump on them right away in the third period and put them away.” Oshkosh, to their credit, made a brief run before Matthew led a 12-2 run just before the third quarter ended. He scored only once, but had four rebounds, two steals and three assists in the final three minutes of the period. The final score was 95-68. Matthew finished with a triple-double; 17 points, 16 rebounds and 14 assists in an awesome display of basketball.

  “Madison West will be tough tomorrow, try to get some sleep,” I pleaded on deaf ears. It was well after 2:00 AM when the Shorewood crowd dispersed and I heard the boys sneaking back into their rooms.

  It was our third game in three days and I could sense the boys were tired. Their eyes wandered and their reactions were slow as they warmed up for the biggest game of their lives. Even worse, they had spent the afternoon reading the newspapers which told them how good they were and installed us as ten point favorites. It was heady stuff for a team that was 1-8 at the Christmas break.

  Madison West had two, small, quick guards that would be difficult to press, but their real strength was the twins, a pair of 6’8’, 240 pound bruisers that controlled the backboards and stifled the inside game of every team they had played this year. The only two games they lost were when the twins fouled out. “Apparently, they do everything together,” Kevin joked.

  We started out in a man-to-man defense and picked up their guards at half court and forced a couple turnovers with our half-court trap. Tom and Kevin did a good job on the backboards and the score was tied halfway through the second quarter when we seemed to hit a wall. The twins started controlling the boards and Madison West pulled away for an eight point halftime lead, much to the delight of the partisan crowd. Matthew also surprised me as he seemed passive. Was he tired?

  “Come on guys, we need to pick it up in the second half or we’re going home with the little trophy,” I shouted trying to raise their energy level. I could tell they were running on an empty tank and it would take something special to get them going, but I couldn’t figure what to say. “Come on Matthew, you need to take charge.”

  The third quarter was more of the same as Madison controlled the boards and only an occasional jump shot by Matthew kept the game from getting completely out of hand. Still, we trailed by 12 as we entered the fourth quarter with the second team on the floor. The deficit was still 12 with six minutes to go when I called time out. “Okay boys, this is it, this is what you worked so hard for these last few months.”

  I wasn’t confident as the starters reported to the score keeper, but out of nowhere an idea came to me. I walked over to the cheerleaders. “Jennifer, all year long Matthew has gotten the crowd going; now it’s your turn to return the favor. We need a boost. Spread the floor and get the crowd yelling and I don’t want them to stop until the game is over."

  Cheerleaders led us onto the floor and the Shorewood fans stood and cheered along with large number of neutral fans that were hoping for a comeback. The noise continued unabated as the referees finally managed to ge
t the cheerleaders off the floor. The arena was near bedlam as we cut the 12 point lead to one with ninety seconds to go. Our team had come alive and was finally playing with the energy and enthusiasm I had come to expect. Matthew was all over the floor exerting his will on the Madison West players.

  It was his blocked shot and a rebound that started the game-deciding sequence. It was still anyone’s game when Madison West launched a three-point shot from the top of the circle that would have tied the game. Matthew lunged and deflected the ball just enough for the shot to bounce high off the rim. The crowd roared as the twins leaped high for the rebound, anticipating another easy follow-up basket that would cut the lead to one point. Instead, Matthew wedged himself between the two giants and leaped high with elbows extended, catching the both twins on their jaw. Matthew grabbed the ball with one hand and in one motion through a quick outlet pass to Rodney who started another fast break. The twins fell to the floor, more shocked than injured, as Matthew raced up-court. Erin’s layup was too hard but Matthew was there to tip it in, giving us a five point lead with forty five seconds to go. We held on for an 84-79 victory. The Shorewood Bulldogs were State Champions.

  Fans were still screaming as I accepted the championship trophy. It was no surprise that Matthew was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.

  Chapter 16 - SAT One