4A District 15 Tournament: Bartlett defeats Houston

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>No. 1 seed Bartlett defeated No. 2 seed Houston, 55-52, Tuesday evening to capture this season's TSSAA 4A District 15 Tournament championship.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Panthers will have a No. 1 seed in the 4A Region 8 Tournament. The Mustangs will be a No. 2 seed. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are 3 observations from the win:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Frison made tough shots</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Houston's [player_tooltip player_id='2101889' first='Justin' last='Frison'] made tough shots throughout the contest, carrying the Mustangs offensively for a full 32 minutes. Bartlett‘s game plan was simple: load up its size and athleticism on the side of the floor Frison was on and each time he has the basketball, force him to his right. The Panthers weren't too worried about anyone else making shots. They were only concerned about Frison getting great looks at the rim. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Frison did a good job taking what the defense was giving him around the elbow and paint area, especially when the length of Bartlett ([player_tooltip player_id='2083148' first='Axton' last='Perry'], [player_tooltip player_id='2194617' first='DJ' last='Okoth'], and [player_tooltip player_id='2291122' first='Dylan' last='Jones']) was smothering one side of the floor, with senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2307628' first='Sydney' last='Thompson'] face guarding him. Frison finished the with 29 points on a night he was the No. 1 target to take out.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Great progress</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2194617' first='DJ' last='Okoth'] showed strides in his development Tuesday night. In the first quarter, Okoth displayed his ability to put the basketball on the floor and make shots from the perimeter. Okoth made 2 3s in the first half. He finished the contest with 16 points. The numbers are good on paper, but Okoth expanding his offensive game - in a meaningful contest - is a positive sign for the Panthers' playoff push.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sticking to his role</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2307628' first='Sydney' last='Thompson'] got a crucial steal late in the fourth quarter that led to a score for Bartlett. He harassed [player_tooltip player_id='2101889' first='Justin' last='Frison']. Thompson is asked to be Bartlett's best on-ball defender. He's asked to harass the other team's best point guard. Panthers head coach Dion Real counts on him to do the small things that aren't going to show up in the score book.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In his final high school basketball season, Thompson suits up and does his job.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>”I just gotta be a dog for my team, make the right plays, and just get stops,” said Thompson, who finished with 6 points. “Try not to let their best player get off. Just keep getting stops, keep playing hard, and be a dog.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Real knows Thompson could have went to other programs and played a bigger role. Thompson could have stayed in 4A and went to another program that was in dire need of a starting guard. Yet, he stayed with Bartlett, waited until his senior season to play a lot of minutes in a season where the Panthers are heavily favored by many to win this season's 4A state title.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thompson's play, especially on the defensive end, will play a pivotal role in Bartlett's 4A title chase.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>”What a lot of people don't realize is that he's taking a secondary role on offense. He can really, really do some stuff offensively,” Real said about Thompson. “He's sacrificing for his team to win. That takes nothing but resilience, to continue to show up every single day, continue to grind.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Again, he knows how good he is. We know how good he is. And he's been really, really good, but he has some offensive stuff that people haven't seen yet. He's really, really important to our success to this point this year.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>All-Tournament Team</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2781134' first='Christian' last='Coleman'] (Collierville), [player_tooltip player_id='2624485' first='RJ' last='Tate'] (Arlington), [player_tooltip player_id='2111892' first='Jordan' last='Myles'] (Houston), [player_tooltip player_id='2101889' first='Justin' last='Frison'] (Houston), [player_tooltip player_id='2979284' first='Malachi' last='Hill'] (Bartlett), [player_tooltip player_id='2678918' first='Amaury' last='St. Ann'] (Bartlett), and [player_tooltip player_id='2083148' first='Axton' last='Perry'] were named to the 4A District 15 All-Tournament Team. Perry was named MVP.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3rd place game</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Arlington defeated Collierville, 73-53, in the 3rd place game. The Tigers locked in a No. 3 seed in the 4A Region 8 Tournament. The Dragons are a No. 4 seed.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>All-District Teams</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>First Team</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2194475' first='Braylon' last='Williams'] (Bartlett)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2624485' first='RJ' last='Tate']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2194617' first='DJ' last='Okoth'] </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2111892' first='Jordan' last='Myles']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2101889' first='Justin' last='Frison'] (MVP)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Second Team</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2291122' first='Dylan' last='Jones'] </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2781134' first='Christian' last='Coleman']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2043374' first='Kaleb' last='Davis'] (Houston)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jaylen Cooley (Cordova)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2784747' first='Rod' last='Lucas'] (Arlington)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Third Team</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2083148' first='Axton' last='Perry']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2307628' first='Sydney' last='Thompson']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Darrien Branch (Germantown)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2816303' first='Jayden' last='Gray'] (Collierville)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2413439' first='Jayden' last='Jordan-James'] (Arlington)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->