OAKWOOD — It could have been a scene right out of ‘Hoosiers.’
West Hall boys coach Bobby Pless, showing his team a blank banner that will be hung in the school's gym at the end of the season, told his group that it can say whatever they want it too.
“I told them it was up to them to determine what will be written on it,” Pless explained. “Nothing; state tournament; Sweet 16; State Champs. It was up to them.”
Considering that the Spartans had just completed a yo-yo-like campaign with injuries and disappointing losses, it seemed a bold declaration for Pless to present as an opportunity for his charges, who finished just 7-17 during the regular season.
Projected starter Braden Martin missed 19 games. Post players Quincey Holcomb and Hunter Rainey missed nearly 10 games combined. It wasn’t until just before the region tournament that Pless was finally able to send out his top five players at one time on a consistent, and nearly basketball-ready, basis.
“I thought coming into the season we had a chance to score and really have a good balanced team,” Pless said. “But we lost Braden until after the Christmas break and Quincey and Hunter had small injuries and things so we really never had our team together the way I saw it coming out of the summer. It was a little frustrating because being in the region we are in I knew that without a full complement of players it was going to be tough.”
So when the region tournament was set to get underway, for Pless and the Spartans it was almost like approaching a season-opener.
“We got together before region and that’s when we looked at the banner and asked what did they want it to say,” Pless said. “Standing there and looking at it I think they began to understand as we got ready to try and get in the playoffs. We got the win against Chestatee [55-53 with a late game-winner] to get us in and now I think they see that every game is another opportunity to keep playing and prove what kind of team they can be.”
They did drop their final two games in the region tournament to finish as the No. 4 seed but Pless again reiterated that everyone was starting over and that the real season was about to begin. They took it all to heart last week knocking off Southeast Whitfield 76-75, where the Raiders hit a 3-pointer right before the buzzer to make it closer, in the first round of the Class 4A state tournament.
The 76 points matched a season high and the victory, their first-ever road playoff win, snapped a seven-game losing streak in road playoff games. It also was their first playoff win of any kind since beating Shaw 69-64 in the 2011 Class 3A playoffs.
“We told them everyone is 0-0 and that the goal was to be 1-0 after each game, We had a good feeling going into the Southeast game because it’s really about matchups this time of year and we thought it was a good matchup for us,” Pless said. “The guys really played like I thought they could all year. Probably our best game of the season.”
Now the Spartans (9-19) will head to Cartersville (16-13) looking to do something no West Hall boys team has done since 1994: advance to the quarterfinal round.
The Hurricanes, the No. 2 seed out of Region 5-4A, are coming off a nail-biting 59-57 win over Madison County last week in the opening round. The two teams have several common opponents.
Both teams beat White County, the Spartans getting 60-59 and 58-45 wins and Cartersville getting a 49-46 victory over the Warriors. West Hall dropped a 63-61 decision to Madison County in its third game of the season.
And while the Hurricanes are 10-2 at home this season, they are just 4-3 in their last seven games overall. West Hall is just 3-7 on the road overall but won 2 of its last 4 away from Oakwood down the stretch.
Pless is more than welcoming another road trip. And he has another positive feeling about the all-important matchup.
“To me, road playoff games are less distracting,” he said. “You don’t have to worry about setting the gym up and deal with parents and administrators to make sure everything from concessions and tickets and things like that are ready to go. When you’re on the road all you do is get on the bus, get off the bus, get warmed up and focus just on the game.
“We’re really playing well right now and I think we’re focused right now and I think being on the road with the region tournament and state playoffs is helping us.
“Cartersville is a lot like us in that they are up-and-down shooting the ball. They have a lot of length similar to Denmark and like to play in transition. If we rebound, move the ball around on offense, and play defense like we did in the first round we have a real chance.”
Senior Noah Edmondson (17.3 points a game, 3.0 rebounds a game, 2 assists a game) has been the one consistent offensive weapon all season for the Spartans but fellow senior Sawyer Passmore (12 ppg, 2 apg, a team-high 66 3-pointers) has really stepped forward over the last half of the season. The pair also combined for 10 assists in the win over Southeast.
Senior Devin Williams has been averaging 7 ppg and 7 rpg over the past three weeks after averaging just 3.4 ppg most of the season. Martin, also a senior, is back in his crucial role as point guard has been a big addition down the stretch and just now getting his basketball legs under him.
"Noah has been consistent all seson and we'll need him for sure. But Sawyer has really picked his game up and with Braden back that gives us a real three-person threat on offense. Devin has been a big part of our improvement the last few weeks," Pless said.
The Hurricanes will counter with seniors Perignon Dyer (20 pp, 5.8 rpg, 3.3 apg) and Isaac Gridley (13.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 4.1 apg) and will present some tough matchups for the Spartans defense.
But Pless said the banner is still on their mind and they are not ready to break out their Sharpie just yet.
“(The banner is) there every day for them to see so I think it’s something they’re thinking about and how they want this to end, especially for the seniors,” Pless said. “We’re 0-0 right now so all we have to do is get to 1-0 to keep going. The guys are confident.
“I don’t know if it’s like Hoosiers but no one is probably expecting them to be here and certainly not thinking we can keep going. I think they want to keep showing people how good they really are.”
