Anatomy of an upset
Published in The Daily Journal, Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2009
MILLVILLE, N.J. — Dale Moore wasn’t exactly angry. Exasperated was a better word to describe the coach’s emotion as the players on Millville High School’s boys’ basketball team struggled through a defensive drill in practice last Wednesday.
“We have to improve our help defense, guys,” Moore implored. “Oakcrest killed us because we didn’t help in our man defense yesterday. If we don’t do that against Egg Harbor, we’re going to lose by 30!”
The Thunderbolts had won the previous game against the Falcons, but it was far from a convincing win. Looming was a showdown with Egg Harbor Township, one of the favorites in Division I of the Cape-Atlantic League American Conference.
As the players tried to shore up their shortcomings in practice, little did they know that in a little more than 24 hours, they would pull off one of the many surprising upsets South Jersey basketball has seen this season.
Addressing weaknesses
Practice ran a lot more smoothly last season. Millville started four seniors then, and that group basically ran practice. Their chemistry allowed the undersized Bolts to reach the Group IV South quarterfinals.
Only junior guard Jaymere Hadden, who started at forward last season, remains from that starting five. This year’s lineup includes senior forward Deondre Mooring and senior guard Tariq Gaskins, who hardly saw any varsity time as juniors; senior Derrick Gattis, a sweet-shooting guard who couldn’t crack a lineup that had two all-conference caliber guards; and senior Khalil Wallace, who was not even enrolled at the school last year.
“It’s a lot different,” said Gattis, who at 5-foot-7 and 164 pounds has a game reminiscent of former NBA player Dana Barros. “Last year, we had a lot of leadership. This year we have leadership, just not as much because there’s not as much experience. It makes a big difference in practice.”
Moore and assistant coach Michael Jones do more talking now, but on this day they only stop practice a couple times. The previous game factors heavily into what the Bolts address in practice, Moore said, and the players were aware the mistakes they made against Oakcrest would cost them against EHT.
“Sometimes it’s hard, going into a season, knowing what you need to focus on and work on,” Moore said. “But when you have games, it exposes your weaknesses. Coming out of the Oakcrest game, even though we won, I thought the things we needed to concentrate on were press, press break, weakside rebounding, our 3-2 defense and man-to-man defense. Really, it’s about focusing on our technique.”
Implementing the gameplan
It is the first home game of the season. The stands are packed. The team needs to get the fans involved early to shellshock the Eagles and create energy off which the Bolts can feed.
They do.
“I had bubbleguts about it a little bit, because so many people were talking about this game,” Hadden said. “But when we started warming up, I just got in the game. The crowd got me hyped and we were ready.”
Right away, the adjustments made in practice — and reiterated in the locker room before the game — pay off. The Bolts dictate the tempo offensively and give up only eight first-quarter points due to improved help defense.
Of course, gameplanning only goes so far. Part of the Bolts’ success has to do with Wallace, the most tenacious rebounder in the area, crashing the boards as usual. He and the 6-3, 240-pound Mooring essentially solve Millville’s weakside rebounding issues by themselves. Hadden runs the offense like a natural point guard. Gattis, who downed two Five-Hour energy drinks before tipoff in a move he is sure to regret later that evening, appears to have decided he’s not going to miss a shot and hits six three-pointers.
The Bolts burst to a 28-18 lead at halftime and cling to a 49-43 lead after three quarters. In the waning moments, after Wallace and Mooring foul out, sophomore forward Aaron Cox endures some jawing by EHT’s Anthony Taylor (who would score a game-high 33 points) and calmly drops two free throws to seal the 73-69 victory.
After all the preparation, the result depended on the players once the ball went up.
“I thought they played outstanding,” Moore said. “I told them in the locker room, I know they were tired in the fourth quarter, and they gave everything they had. That’s all you can ask for from your basketball team. If we came up a little short, I’m just as proud of them as if we win the game.”
While the Eagles ride home on a quiet bus and the home fans celebrate, the Bolts briefly congratulate each other in the locker room. Within minutes, however, they have pulled on their sweatpants and heavy coats to depart into the winter night. Tomorrow is another game.
“Gotta forget about this one,” Mooring said. “I mean, this is a good win, but we’ve got to go into tomorrow as a new day. This one means nothing after today.”
Benjee
