Season’s end: Wooddale needed Chandler Lawson to win its first-ever state title
Wooddale head coach Keelon Lawson sat Chandler Lawson in the second quarter as he felt his son was being pushed around by the smaller Knoxville Fulton forwards. As Chandler sat, the Falcons built a 30-23 lead in the early minutes…
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Continue ReadingWooddale head coach Keelon Lawson sat Chandler Lawson in the second quarter as he felt his son was being pushed around by the smaller Knoxville Fulton forwards.
As Chandler sat, the Falcons built a 30-23 lead in the early minutes of the third quarter.
It was an unusual learning lesson for Chandler, who has held his own against elite competition in the past. But in the third quarter, Chandler got going for the Cardinals (33-4), scoring eight of his 16 points to help Wooddale win its first-ever Class AA State Championship Saturday afternoon inside the Murphy Center.
Chandler finishes his high school basketball career with four state titles. He also ends it with two MVP trophies, but if his father hadn’t sat him down, his final year in high school may have ended on a sour note.
“I had to get on Chandler’s butt, telling him ‘So, you’re going to let these dudes stop your history?’” Keelon said. “I told him ‘You have played against tougher kids all your life. You can’t let some players from Knoxville punk you out and play aggressive. You know how to play.’
“This team evolves around him, even though other guys have been stepping up throughout the tournament, but this is the time I needed him to step up, so they can follow suit.”
The Cardinals started to put the game away when Chandler took off from the baseline for the one-handed slam. Chandler followed that up with two made free throws, pushing Wooddale’s lead to 55-44 with 1:02 remaining, leaving the Falcons (28-5) with very little time and confidence to rally.
“I had to get his attention,” Keelon said. “I had to hold him accountable. If we are going to lose here, we aren’t going to lose with him out on the floor.”
Before the start of the season, Keelon put the Cardinals’ success all on Chandler, giving him the floor to lead a team all on his own. In Chandler’s previous three seasons with Memphis East, he played with a ton of star power and basically played a vital role in the helping the Mustangs win three-consecutive Class AAA state titles, but this season seemed to be more taxing because of everything he had to endure.
And sitting on the bench was a wake-up call to what Chandler needed to do to end his high school basketball career on a high note.
“It was frustrating to not play, and when I went out, they took the lead. If I was still in, we probably could’ve went up double-digits,” said Chandler, who made all six of his free throw attempts. I’m glad he took me out, because that woke me up.”
Chandler had a solid supporting cast of guys who made a name for themselves as the 2018 season progressed. Junior guard Johnathan Duncan is a knockdown shooter. He made the team’s lone 3-pointer on Saturday, which extended Wooddale’s lead to 48-39 before Chandler’s dunk.
Junior Alvin Miles is an aggressive point guard that gave the team the boost it needed to make it to the state tournament. He scored 11 points against Knoxville Fulton. Kevin Brown, the smallest guard on the team, plays hard on both ends of the floor, despite being just 5-foot-5. Brown made all four of his free throw attempts to finish the game with eight points.
Then there’s Johnathan Lawson, the youngest brother in the Lawson family, who also brought championship experience to the team. Johnathan was a freshman last season when Memphis East won its third-consecutive state title. He finished with 16 points and seven rebounds in Saturday’s championship game.
With all of the support around Chandler, he still had to be a leader and deliver a MVP type of performance in order for the season to end well.
His monster dunk ignited his teammates to finish strong.
“I was just trying to find a lane, get the crowd hyped,” Chandler said. “I had to get a dunk, so I could get the momentum back.”
Defensive toughness
Wooddale forced 23 turnovers, which led to 27 points for the Cardinals.
Top of the Mountain
Chandler is the only brother to finish his high school basketball career with four state titles and two Tournament MVP Awards. Dedric and K.J. Lawson won the Class AA state title in 2006 under Keelon at Hamilton High School. Johnathan is just a sophomore that still has two years left, with two state titles to his resume.
The Oregon commit was asked after the game on whether or not he’s the best of the four.
His response: “I am the best.”