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MURFREESBORO — Bartlett coach Wes Shappley thinks people may have looked at his team's 11 losses this season and thought the Panthers didn't deserve to be back for this season's TSSAA girls basketball state tournament.
Cookeville coach Jamie Gillies watched Bartlett on film and thought her team didn't need to guard Bartlett at the perimeter during Friday's 4A state semifinal.
Bartlett responded to doubters on all fronts.
Akya Woods shot 3-of-5 on 3-pointers in the opening quarter as Bartlett charged to a 55-43 win over Cookville (25-8) to advance to the state championship game for the third year in a row. The Panthers (25-11) will face Bradley Central, the two-time defending champion, at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.
"It feels great because everyone doubted us getting back," Woods said. "They said it's hard to make it back three times, so I feel like we've proved everybody wrong, and we're back with a shot at the gold ball."
Gillies noted that, upon entering the game, her focus was on Bartlett's post play. The concern was warranted, as junior forward Samiya Jones dominated with 10 points, 15 rebounds, and a block. However, it was the Panthers' five 3-pointers that gave them the 17-7 first-quarter lead they never relented.
"We were really worried about their post players, so we were gonna leave their guards open at three," Gillies said. "They made some big shots early that hurt us."
"Coaches watch film and they, 'sag off of me,'" Woods said. "I go out there and have confidence in myself."
Bartlett's confidence has come from within all season. It was needed in the many tough moments Shappley sorted through after the game — a 74-22 loss on the road in Texas or the first regular-season loss to Collierville in years. Those losses, along with a slew of injuries, forged a team that's right back in the state title game.
"(Taking) some of those shots that we've taken, it forced us to look within," Shappley said. "The culmination of all of that forced us to (say), 'either, we're gonna get through this, or we're gonna fall apart.' I think we learned that we really are a good team."
Under the brightest lights possible in MTSU's Murphy Center, it's Bartlett's opponents that have learned that Woods can shoot and that Jones is a force, one Shappley would "put up against anybody in the tournament."
"With Woods, she does so many un-stattable things," he said. "She impacts winning. She's the glue. Tonight, you see it on the stat sheet."
As for Jones, she didn't credit her big performances (including 16 points in the quarterfinals) to anything more complicated than the desire driving the whole team.
"It's just about getting back to that state championship game," Jones said. "I'm just trying to help my team as much as possible."
Now, Barlett is back. On Saturday, it has a chance to win the school's first state title.
"We're excited to be there," Shappley said. "I know there are a lot of folks out there that think we shouldn't be there because we lost 11 times or because we're the lowest-seeded team (at the state tournament) on MaxPreps. I'm sure folks probably think they can beat us by 70, but hey, we're there, and we're gonna take full advantage of being there."
Wendell Shepherd Jr. is The Commercial Appeal's high school sports beat writer. Reach Wendell at [email protected] or on X @wendellsjr_.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: TSSAA girls basketball state tournament: Bartlett returns to title game
Continue reading...
Cookeville coach Jamie Gillies watched Bartlett on film and thought her team didn't need to guard Bartlett at the perimeter during Friday's 4A state semifinal.
Bartlett responded to doubters on all fronts.
Akya Woods shot 3-of-5 on 3-pointers in the opening quarter as Bartlett charged to a 55-43 win over Cookville (25-8) to advance to the state championship game for the third year in a row. The Panthers (25-11) will face Bradley Central, the two-time defending champion, at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.
"It feels great because everyone doubted us getting back," Woods said. "They said it's hard to make it back three times, so I feel like we've proved everybody wrong, and we're back with a shot at the gold ball."
Gillies noted that, upon entering the game, her focus was on Bartlett's post play. The concern was warranted, as junior forward Samiya Jones dominated with 10 points, 15 rebounds, and a block. However, it was the Panthers' five 3-pointers that gave them the 17-7 first-quarter lead they never relented.
"We were really worried about their post players, so we were gonna leave their guards open at three," Gillies said. "They made some big shots early that hurt us."
"Coaches watch film and they, 'sag off of me,'" Woods said. "I go out there and have confidence in myself."
Bartlett's confidence has come from within all season. It was needed in the many tough moments Shappley sorted through after the game — a 74-22 loss on the road in Texas or the first regular-season loss to Collierville in years. Those losses, along with a slew of injuries, forged a team that's right back in the state title game.
"(Taking) some of those shots that we've taken, it forced us to look within," Shappley said. "The culmination of all of that forced us to (say), 'either, we're gonna get through this, or we're gonna fall apart.' I think we learned that we really are a good team."
Under the brightest lights possible in MTSU's Murphy Center, it's Bartlett's opponents that have learned that Woods can shoot and that Jones is a force, one Shappley would "put up against anybody in the tournament."
"With Woods, she does so many un-stattable things," he said. "She impacts winning. She's the glue. Tonight, you see it on the stat sheet."
As for Jones, she didn't credit her big performances (including 16 points in the quarterfinals) to anything more complicated than the desire driving the whole team.
"It's just about getting back to that state championship game," Jones said. "I'm just trying to help my team as much as possible."
Now, Barlett is back. On Saturday, it has a chance to win the school's first state title.
"We're excited to be there," Shappley said. "I know there are a lot of folks out there that think we shouldn't be there because we lost 11 times or because we're the lowest-seeded team (at the state tournament) on MaxPreps. I'm sure folks probably think they can beat us by 70, but hey, we're there, and we're gonna take full advantage of being there."
Wendell Shepherd Jr. is The Commercial Appeal's high school sports beat writer. Reach Wendell at [email protected] or on X @wendellsjr_.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: TSSAA girls basketball state tournament: Bartlett returns to title game
Continue reading...
