The Unsung Heroes: McGuinness Classic/Putnam City Invitational

<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">This weekend was filled with outstanding players that all deserve their own types of recognition, but these three players did everything necessary for their team's victory, putting their personal stats second and going out and playing basketball the way they do best.</span></p> <hr /> <p class="p1"><span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;"><em><strong>Israel Hart - 2021 - Midwest City</strong></em></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Hart came off the bench and performed in a HUGE way for the Midwest City. Hart was extremely valuable on the defensive end, wreaking havoc in the passing lanes and creating opportunities for his teammates to score in transition. Hart also acted as the primary ball-handler for Midwest City during his time on the court, playing with great pace and competitiveness, pushing his teammates to a higher level of play whenever he was on the court. Hart is the definition of a winner and shows it in how he carries himself around the court. Picking up teammates when they are down and keeping his focus on the team, Hart did everything Coach Dewayne Bradley expects from an excellent teammate.</span></p> <p class="p2"><span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;"><em><strong>Emahdre Hightower - 2020 - Putnam City West</strong></em></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Though barely scraping five-foot-nine, Hightower plays with a heart nothing less than that of a giant. Whether putting his body on the line for a loose ball, guarding the best player on the other team (no matter the height), or supporting his teammates no matter the occasion, Hightower is the player that a coach always is looking for, the player who is great in the locker room, gives 110%, whether it be in the weight room, on the court, or anywhere else. Hightower's agility earned him a big block on 6'4 Seth Chargois of Union high school, showing elite athleticism and agility to make the play. No coach will want to be the one that misses out on this young man.</span></p> <p class="p2"><span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;"><em><strong>Jacobi Johnson - 2020 - Midwest City</strong></em></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Johnson's hustle and elite competitiveness made him invaluable to Midwest City on its path to the championship game against Edmond Memorial. Eating up everything on the glass and securing second-chance opportunities for his team, Johnson proved how important he was to his team's success. Jacobi Johnson was sneaky quick and showed off some excellent footwork in the post, even handling the ball and creating scoring opportunities for his teammates out of the high post, something you don't see too often out of big men.</span></p> <hr /> <p class="p1"><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;"><i>If any information on this article is incorrect, please contact me at </i><a href="http://www.twitter.com/JoshuaRCleary"><span class="s1"><b><i><span style="color: #ff6600;">@JoshuaRCleary</span></i></b></span></a><i> on Twitter!</i></span></p>