MHEA Eagles: Never afraid of a challenge
Memphis Home Education Association’s senior foward Andrew Thomas gets up for a challenge. And so does his teammates. The Eagles were competitive, feisty, and unafraid of a Phoenix Prep team that featured 6-foot-7 wing Jurrell Baldwin. MHEA lost the contest…
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Continue ReadingMemphis Home Education Association’s senior foward Andrew Thomas gets up for a challenge.
And so does his teammates.
The Eagles were competitive, feisty, and unafraid of a Phoenix Prep team that featured 6-foot-7 wing Jurrell Baldwin. MHEA lost the contest 59-55 in the opening day of the Allen Iverson’s Battle in the Bluff showcase event, but the Eagles showed heart and never lacked confidence.
MHEA trailed by double-digits for most of the third quarter and in the early minutes of the fourth quarter. Defensively, the Eagles were able to claw back into the game. Everyone on the floor seemed to be in tune with deflecting passes, going after loose balls, and crashing the boards.
MHEA didn’t seemed bothered by its deficit. Its head coach, Jason Williams, simply asked for effort, and his team delivered.
”I love playing with these guys. We all fought hard in the fourth quarter,” Thomas said. “It was next man up. We subbed in and out. Everybody’s putting in good minutes. When people went in, it was very unselfish basketball. We were playing as a team defensively.
”That’s what really turned it for us. We held them to 59 points, which is something they’re not used to. They’re used to putting up big numbers, so in a defensive game, we really stepped up against them.”
The fourth quarter featured one of the Eagles’ defining stretches as a unit. Thomas had a layup to make it 51-48. Then his brother, junior guard Caleb Thomas, knocked down a 3 from the top of the key that made it 54-51. A layup by senior forward Robert Dawkins had MHEA down 57-55. A turnover by Caleb late sealed the win for Phoenix Prep, but it wasn’t an easy one to get. The Eagles weren’t afraid of the challenge. They never feared the opposing team.
”We were ready. We wanted them, because we knew they were a prep school out of Phoenix. We wanted to show them that Memphis basketball is different and we aren’t to be looked over,” said Andrew, who along with his brother Caleb, finished with 13 points. “We really wanted to fight them and hold them to what they’re not used to.”
The senior frontcourt did all it could to give MHEA multiple scoring opportunities. The effort was there on the boards. Both embraced the physicality in the paint. All of the guards for the Eagles, especially the bench unit (guards Hudson Spangenberg and Caleb Mathis, and forward Ko’Mar Stewart) gave solid minutes. A loss is a loss, but having guts to not be afraid is something that can’t be taught. It’s either in each player or it’s not.
It’s in MHEA.