REFORM, Ala. — The reminders are everywhere.
The 2010 state championship banner greets everyone as they enter Tornado Alley at Pickens County High School.
If you find your way back to coach Russ Wallace”s office, you”re bound to spot the screen saver that features members of the 2009-10 boys basketball team celebrating its Alabama High School Athletic Association Class 2A state title.
The Tornadoes made an improbable run with an inexperienced squad that wasn”t blessed with depth.
This season, the Tornadoes are positioned to work more magic in Birmingham, Ala. At 26-1, Pickens County had the luxury of being able to go five in and five out and not skip a beat. The fact that senior Deion Curry, who spearheaded the team”s drive to the championship last season, is coming off the bench with the second unit speaks to the role chemistry has played in helping the Tornadoes get to the Sweet 16.
At 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Pickens County will take on Tharptown (24-8) in the Class 1A Northwest Regional at Drake Coliseum on the campus of Wallace State-Hanceville Community College.
The winner of that game will take on the winner of Wednesday”s other game between Parrish (9-17) and R.A. Hubbard (17-7) at 10:40 a.m. Saturday.
Wallace, who won his first title last season, credits his players for buying into what he said to them at the beginning of the season.
“I told them the first day of practice, ”Guys, there are 10 or 12 of you here that can play,” ” Wallace said. “Even our third five is not bad. Our third five could have won our area. I told them, ”There is a ton of talent sitting here, and we”re going to be five in and five out and y”all are going to have to accept that.”
The Tornadoes haven”t had many tight games this season. They suffered their only loss of the season at Greene County (59-54) on Jan. 18 in a game in which Wallace said his players didn”t adjust to a number of factors. Since then, Pickens County”s closest games have come against Aliceville (61-51 on Jan. 28), Fayette County (55-44 on Feb. 1), and Hale County (72-66 on Feb. 4).
With so many big victories, it”s natural that the Tornadoes don”t have players with gaudy numbers. Instead, the numbers for starters LaJuan Doss, Demarko Hall, Nick Stewart, Warren Betts, and LaGlendale Hughes are pretty similar to the second five of Curry, Bobby Bradford, Kilo Cole, Chris Hill, and Terrien Steele.
Defense is the focus regardless of which lineup is in the game. Wallace said the Tornadoes average about 20 steals per game. Factor in the turnovers opponents make based on the Tornadoes” pressure defense and the number usually approaches 30 every game.
Wallace said the players have recognized playing defense is just as important as accepting roles.
“I think all of them saw that first five goes out and sets the tone,” Wallace said. “That second five comes in and they”re fresh playing at the same level. The other team is already getting tired. When that first five comes back in at the start of the second quarter, it is showtime a lot of times. They are having so much fun, they are staying fresh, and they have bought in to the unselfishness.”
Wallace said it has been so much fun to coach a group that includes five seniors, five juniors, three sophomores, and two freshmen. Three of the seniors play on the third group, and he praised their ability to recognize the program has plenty of young talent that needs to develop. The development of those players has served as motivation because seven of the players on the roster have championship rings and eight don”t.
Wallace hopes all of the players can remain as tight as they have been all season and work to ensure everyone ends this season with the same reward.
“They”re hungry,” Wallace said. “They want one. They see these other guys walking around with a ring on their fingers and they don”t have one. They know they have an opportunity to win one and they have bought in to we”re not going to let anything get in the way of that. They”re not going to let each other get in the way of that.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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