North Crowley, Trimble Tech confident going into playoffs

By Kevin Casas

Special to the Star-Telegram

On the memorable occasion when a team makes it through district play undefeated, it certainly can be taken as a sign of bright things ahead in the UIL basketball playoffs.

When play gets under way next week, the Fort Worth area will boast two teams with unblemished district marks. But only one team has been to the mountaintop.

"And it took some luck, too," North Crowley coach Tommy Brakel said. "Willie Warren hit a game-tying 3-pointer to send it to OT in the area round, or we wouldn't have won the tournament that year."

North Crowley gave Tarrant County its last boys state title in 2008, a 73-67 win over Fort Bend Dulles in the Class 5A final. Warren had his heroics in a 57-54 overtime win over El Paso Montwood in the area round.

For Fort Worth Trimble Tech, it's an effort to grab the city's first 4A state title since Fort Worth Dunbar defeated Beaumont Ozen in 2003. (Dunbar is recognized as state champ in 2006 after Dallas South Oak Cliff was stripped of that title.)

Whatever the outcome, both Brakel and Trimble Tech coach Wendell Ivory were in agreement about one thing: It's defense and rebounding that consistently get it done in the postseason.

For Trimble Tech, Ivory said it's four losses this season in tournament play that mean the most.

"We had to learn some patience," he said. "Because we had so many district games -- 18 -- it was vital that we play in the best tournament against the best competition. We learned a lot about playing good defense and then getting the best shot."

What they saw in those tournaments, Ivory said, was a great look at the kind of defense and level of competition it takes to make that final road trip to Austin.

"Defense is my main focus," Tech guard Julius Harris said. "We have scorers and if someone is off, someone can and will pick up the slack. For me, it's going to be working hard on position and if I do that, the scoring opportunities come on the other end."

Tech has had seven different leading scorers in games this season, and Harris, who doesn't start, is the legitimate sixth man. Still he leads the Bulldogs (26-4) in scoring at 14.8 points per game, followed closely by Charles Hill at 14.1 ppg.

"If you're describing Julius as Jet Terry [Mavericks guard], that's exactly what he is," Ivory said. "A lot of teams will try to key on Charles and that's when everyone else steps it up."

Just inside the southern edge of the Fort Worth city limits, North Crowley's Brakel has built a program to compete with the best. For the fifth straight time, North Crowley completed its District 4-5A slate unbeaten.

The 27.5-point average margin of victory in district means little when facing teams more evenly matched in the postseason.

"We've told them that now it's just probable that the team will have a couple of off-shooting nights," he said. "We have to be sound on defense and get the big rebounds."

It was a 13-point loss to South Grand Prairie and an 18-point loss to DeSoto that are the most glaring measurements of North Crowley's season.

But Brakel was quick to point out that his team received a good look in those losses as to what the Panthers (28-4) face in the playoffs.

"We played a lot of games right during that time and we were short a player in one game and coming off another loss to Little Rock Parkview," he said. "Certainly I think our team understands the kind of effort it will take from here on out, and we will be better."

The Panthers have averaged 11 steals a game, which means how they create turnovers in the playoffs will be important.

With the ball, North Crowley has three players averaging 10 points a game. The balance has been consistent, as eight players have led the Panthers in scoring this season and four other regulars average a combined 25.3 points per game.

Braxton Reeves leads all North Crowley scorers with 10.8 points per game and has made 61 3-pointers. Calvin Ward and Jalen McCloud are right behind him with 10.1 and 10.0 points per game, respectively.

Brakel noted that 6-foot-7 big man Quinton Moncrief and point guard Torrence Neal are key components to their fortune this postseason.

"If these two guys have the impact I think they can have," Brakel said, "we can put ourselves in position to do something great."

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