Mission complete: Bartlett stands tall in Class 4A

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Twenty-five years is a long time to wait.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Especially, when you're putting your all into something with little to no results to show for it.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bartlett's head coach Dion Real can finally exhale, smile, jump up and down, and fist bump his coaching staff after coaching the Panthers to their first state title since 2001 and his first as a head coach.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was a demolition job by Bartlett (36-4) in its 69-47 win over Walker Valley.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Panthers went into the season with lofty expectations of winning this season's Class 4A title. Anything short of that would have been a huge disappointment. Many thought this was possible, thanks to the discipline and structure Real has injected into the program year after year. This moment was also possible because of the roster that was flooded with top-tier talent.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bartlett has a talented point guard in [player_tooltip player_id='2194475' first='Braylon' last='Williams'], who has been stellar as a sophomore. Junior shooting guard [player_tooltip player_id='2291122' first='Dylan' last='Jones'] has been a consistent shot maker. Sophomore forward [player_tooltip player_id='2194617' first='DJ' last='Okoth'] has had his head above the rim all season. Senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='2083148' first='Axton' last='Perry'] has done the dirty work in the paint, from rebounding to blocking shots near the rim.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2307628' first='Sydney' last='Thompson'] has had the assignment of guarding the other team's best guard and took each challenge personal. The Panthers have gotten solid minutes from freshman point guard [player_tooltip player_id='2979284' first='Malachi' last='Hill'], and seniors [player_tooltip player_id='2364360' first='Jayden' last='Mitchell'], [player_tooltip player_id='2678918' first='Amaury' last='St. Ann'], and [player_tooltip player_id='2116626' first='Ethan' last='Gatewood'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>All season long, Real has been able to tweak the lineup, thanks to the versatility the roster presents. Okoth, Jones, and Perry displayed their ability to guard multiple positions. Because of it, many teams this season found it difficult to score on the perimeter and near the rim.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>”Most of these guys can guard multiple positions,” Real said. “You have a lot of length out there along with Braylon, Sydney, [player_tooltip player_id='2979284' first='Malachi' last='Hill'], and [player_tooltip player_id='2364360' first='Jayden' last='Mitchell']. They can, kind of, harass you. You have length mixed in with the quickness. It's pretty nice. You have a big luxury.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>All season, each guy has bought in to trusting each other and playing for each other, so hoisting the game ball could become a reality. Jones, Perry, Okoth, and Thompson could have transferred to other schools and been handed more responsibilities on offense. They could have led other teams. They could have had better numbers on paper.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>But, the likelihood of winning a state title wouldn't have been possible. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The celebration started before the final buzzer, with the fan base standing, cheering, and clapping after each score.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Once the final buzzer sounded, the team gathered together, took pictures, gave hugs to one another and the coaching staff. Each player in uniform was smiling, soaking in all of the energy the fan base provided them during this magical run.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>”All these players, their parents, their families sacrificed. That's point, blank, and simple,” Real said. “Any of these guys can go anywhere else and dominate. Most of these can go to higher levels and be a part of special programs also. I'm super thankful, super blessed for these guys to say ‘Hey man, we are going to do this together. We are going to sacrifice from the top to the bottom.‘“</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This season was a clean sweep. Bartlett was 4A District 15 regular season champs, 4A District 15 tournament champs, 4A Region 8 tournament champs, and Class 4A state champs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And Real was correct. A lot of players sacrificed individual accolades to bring a gold ball back to Bartlett, Tennessee. And for one season, with this team, numbers didn't matter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Winning did.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>All-Tournament Team</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2886050' first='Aliyu' last='Idris'] (Whitehaven), Kiyan Mitchell (Whitehaven), [player_tooltip player_id='2358333' first='Justin' last='Nordin'] (Bearden), [player_tooltip player_id='2194617' first='DJ' last='Okoth'] (Bartlett), [player_tooltip player_id='2754640' first='Zach' last='Davis'] (Walker Valley), [player_tooltip player_id='2194475' first='Braylon' last='Williams'] (Bartlett), [player_tooltip player_id='2351063' first='Turner' last='Clayton'] (Walker Valley), [player_tooltip player_id='3338149' first='Isaac' last='Sausville'] (Walker Valley), [player_tooltip player_id='2291122' first='Dylan' last='Jones'] (Bartlett), and [player_tooltip player_id='2083148' first='Axton' last='Perry'] were named to the Class 4A Boys All-Tournament Team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jones was crowned MVP.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->