Team Preview: Midwest City (6A)
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Coach Corky McMullen, who spent a season coaching the Lady Bombers, was announced as Midwest City’s next boy’s head coach in May. McMullen, though in a new role, expects his players to buy-in to maintaining the rich tradition of Midwest…
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Continue ReadingCoach Corky McMullen, who spent a season coaching the Lady Bombers, was announced as Midwest City’s next boy’s head coach in May.
McMullen, though in a new role, expects his players to buy-in to maintaining the rich tradition of Midwest City success.
“There’s a huge tradition here,” McMullen said, “Circumstances change all the time, but the expectation never changes.”
To help support that tradition, McMullen made a point to appoint former Bombers as assistants; Torrey Noel, a second-year Midwest City assistant who graduated from Midwest City in 2014 before playing at Lamar University; and Kentrell Gaddis, a former State Champion at Midwest City who played at Rose State and Central Oklahoma, who also assisted McMullen on the girl’s staff in 2020.
“We want the guys who have been here, who have walked the same halls and been in the same locker room,” McMullen said.
On-the-floor, junior guard Kevin Overton Kevin Overton 6'5" | SG Homeschool | 2022 State OK will be expected to lead the floor for the Bombers in his third season as a starter, McMullen said.
“That experience is huge,” McMullen said, “not only verbally, but just with how he approaches every day. He’s very business-like in his approach, and he’s hungry to learn and the other guys kind of feed off that.”
Also a returning starter, Oklahoma-State-football commit and senior guard Makale Smith Makale Smith 6'1" | PG Midwest City | 2021 State OK will rejoin the Bombers’ basketball team after the Bombers’ state-title run has run its course on the gridiron.
“The thing with Makale is he kinda just has a knack for putting the ball in the hole,” McMullen said, “and because of that, that attracts a lot of attention and allows him to make his teammates better.
“The one thing [Makale] does really well is his presence, alone, is gonna help his teammates,” McMullen said.
A pair of seniors, Israel Hart Israel Hart 6'3" | PG Midwest City | 2021 State OK and Ethan Ganaway Ethan Ganaway 6'5" | SF Midwest City | 2021 State OK , will also play inflated roles from their junior year.
“Ethan didn’t get a ton of playing time before. Israel got some,” McMullen said, “but as seniors, they’re going to be a major catalyst to what this program does.
“They’re both playing with a ton of confidence right now,” McMullen continued. “Both of those guys are guys that all the guys in our locker room respect. . . and how they interact with the young guys is something that’s really important. I think that’s something the tradition is built on here.”
That torch will also be shared with some newcomers, McMullen said. In the paint, Jacobe Sebock and Keivon Hudson both stand above 6-foot-5-inches and will be important pieces to Midwest City’s success.
“[Jacobe] is a guy who’s really versatile,” McMullen said. “He’s pretty long strong, but he can step out and shoot the three. He handles it pretty well and makes good decisions.
“Keivon has just a really high motor, really long and athletic, can really make a difference on the glass,” McMullen continued. “He’s somebody who’s kind of a game-changer on the boards, but he has a pretty good knack for the ball and can go offensively, too.”
Another football player who will enter a major role once he returns is junior Artez Young.
“We have eight guys that could start,” McMullen said, “and we probably could go 10-or-11-deep.”
AJ Easlick will also play in a more exposed role for the Bombers, McMullen said.
“He’s a senior who hasn’t played a whole lot,” McMullen said, “but he’s really been an engine for us, specifically in practice. . . he’s earned himself some time because he’s really organized, plays with great effort, and he’s really just a team guy.”
To organize his deep roster into a winning team, McMullen said his focus will be to get better every day.
“One of the things we say is ’we want to get one percent better every day,’ and that’s really our focus,” McMullen said. “Obviously, I think everyone’s mission is we want to win our last game. . . but our expectation is to be our best every day.”