LD Bell assistant, Blue Raiders step up following head coach’s heart surgery
LD Bell is in Brock Pembleton’s DNA.
His three children all graduated as Blue Raiders and Pembleton has been with the school since 2006.
He was an assistant for the girls basketball team before becoming head coach in 2009. Then he moved over to the boys team in the summer of 2017.
The Lady Raiders enjoyed postseason success with “Coach P” and the boys are 16-3 this season and ranked No. 2 in the Star-Telegram area basketball rankings.
Things looked fantastic on the outside, but things on the inside weren’t so great for Pembleton in the fall.
Pembleton was there for the first day of practice on Oct. 30.
The next day, he was in the hospital.
Coach P had to repair his mitral valve and went into heart failure. He spent nine days in ICU and didn’t return to work for a month.
“My mitral valve wasn’t working correctly. I knew I had a heart murmur for the past two years and I’d go for check ups every six months with no symptoms,” Pembleton said. “I saw a surgeon in September and we talked about doing surgery in March after the season. Then the third week of October, I had symptoms.”
Coach P went in to fix the valve, but before the robotic surgery, his heart rate dropped and had to be shocked.
“I wasn’t in good shape,” Pembleton said. “They had to stabilize me and then I got the surgery. I was on a ventilator the next day and it took longer than expected.”
“It was a little scary. We saw him after surgery and that kind of hit us hard,” senior guard Jaden Wells added.
Stepping In
The 2019-20 season was just starting and the Blue Raiders were without their leader.
But assistant coach Scott Hyde quickly filled in and delivered.
“It went by fast. It was like two or three days, but Coach P has a great set up here so it was an easy fit,” Hyde said. “Those guys in the locker room make it easy.”
“I remember Scott stepped up and did a phenomenal job. He had to wear two or three hats,” head girls basketball coach Andy Bloodworth added. “As an assistant coach, you always have to be prepared and he handled it like a champ.”
Hyde was on triple duty, organizing everything from varsity, junior varsity and freshman teams to team pictures. But he got some help from football assistant Charles Carter, who played at Bell.
“Scott jumped in and it was a great learning experience,” head football coach Mike Glaze said. “He wants to be a head coach one day and he stepped into that role for a month long opportunity and realized all the things the head coach has to do.
“Coach Carter helped out with the JV so Scott could focus on varsity.”
The Blue Raiders went 12-1 during Coach P’s absence.
“It was a setback for us when Coach P was out, but we had to do it for him. Coach Hyde said Coach P was always there for us,” Wells said. “We started the season strong. We had to play for him. We love him and couldn’t let him down.”
Bell won its first seven games and only lost to defending Class 5A state champ Mansfield Timberview, 54-52.
“Coach Hyde did an amazing job with the team. He stepped up and took care of everything,” Pembleton said.
Coach P’s Return
Pembleton was released from the hospital after nine days and would visit practice from time to time during the following three weeks.
He made his return to the bench at home against Fossil Ridge on Dec. 17. Bell won by 20.
“It meant everything to me,” Pembleton said. “Got to see everyone, hugs, told them I loved them. I got so much love and support from the school and community when I was out.”
Added Glaze, “It was good for the kids. Brock has done a great job building relationships with them and it’s great having him back. They missed him and he’s a father figure to some of them.”
Bell is 3-1 in District 3-6A. The Blue Raiders beat Euless Trinity, 57-54, on Jan. 3 — their first win in the series since 2016.
Wells, who signed to play at Central Oklahoma, and sophomore Naz Brown are both averaging over 22 points per game. They play Haltom on Tuesday.
“This group is close ever since we lost in the playoffs last season,” Hyde said. “They’re a resilient and hungry bunch. Coach P being away made them fight even more and they were ready to take off.
“Looking back at it, it was all part of a greater plan. It will probably make more sense 5, 10 years down the road. Sometimes the best way to learn is being thrown into something. You’re forced to sink or swim and thankfully, we’ve been swimming.”
This story was originally published January 21, 2020 at 7:00 AM.
