SHOCKER, SHOCKER,SHOCKER!!!

Here it is on Monday and I am still in shock with what I witnessed at The Burial Ground last Wednesday night. How did a 7 and 16 Byrnes team come into Gaffney's house and upset the defending State Champions? How did a BAD Byrnes team beat the best team in the state? How did Gaffney lose, in the first round of the playoffs, to a team they had already beaten twice during the regular season by an average of 27.5 points? If you will look back at my preview of this game you will see what I said. The only way Byrnes could stay in this game would be if the Gaffney Indians did not have their heads in the game mentally. You could see GAFFNEY WAS NOT MENTALLY READY TO PLAY THIS GAME! They were missing layups, free throws, not blocking out on rebounds and they were not playing with their usual defensive intensity. THEY THOUGHT THEY COULD JUST SHOW UP AND WIN! It was like the two teams switched uniforms after pregame warm ups. You have to give Byrnes some credit, they played the game of their lives. They were getting to the loose balls, the ball was bouncing their way all night long. As Gaffney's poor play kept them in the game, they did what they had to do to win the basketball game. As bad as the Tribe played they still had a chance to win the game in the closing seconds. Their Allstate Point Guard Dershawn Dawkins missed his second free throw with 6.7 seconds left, that would have given Gaffney a 3 point lead. Another thing I said in the Playoff preview, was free throw shooting could cost the Indians in a close game. IT DID IN DEED!! After the miss they let Byrnes get the rebound and dribble all the way through their defense, even though they had three fouls to give before they would put the Rebels into the one and one. The Rebels missed the off balanced shot, but they got the rebound and scored on a put back at the buzzer to force overtime. It was all Rebels in overtime, as the Indians were still in shock that this Byrnes team had taken them to overtime. The Rebels got the lead on a three pointer and they hit their free throws to get THE UPSET OF ALL UPSETS. The 7 and 16 Byrnes Rebels had shocked the High School basketball world, as they had upset the Defending State Champions and this season's favorite for the State Championship the Gaffney Indians by a score of 61 to 54 in overtime. UNBELIEVABLE!!!!

My View From The Stands..... I came to this game expecting another Gaffney blowout. I came to this game expecting to see the Indians focused and ready to make another run to the State Championship. What I saw was my concerns coming true, they were not mentally ready to win the State Championship. The Tribe has not been mentally ready to win a State Championship since winning the Upwards Christmas Classic in dramatic fashion back in December. THEY GOT THE BIG HEAD! They peaked mentally after their dramatic Championship Game victory over Irmo. They were 12 and 0 and on top of the High School basketball world. Then they started listening to all of the praise that was being said about them. "They were unbeatable", "They were going undefeated" and " You might as well go ahead and give them the State Title now". After the Upwards Championship they went 10 and 3 the rest of the season. They looked like themselves at times, but they were not nearly as mentally sharp as they were the first twelve games. They played frustrated at times, when they usually face adversity with confidence. They end the season at 22 and 3 overall and 8 and 2 and Region 3 4A Champions. The future is bright for next season and beyond, as they are loaded with returning talent and young talent coming up from the JV team and the Middle Schools. It takes more than talent to win championships, as this years Gaffney Indians proved. As the returning players and fans think about what could have been, during the off season, maybe they will both be more mentally ready for a State Championship run next season.

TRIBE FACTS..... The Lady Indians fell to Greenwood 51 to 47 in overtime in the 2nd round of the girls 4A playoffs. The Lady Indians had a very good season as they finished as Co-Champions of Region 3 4A.

Bring on Baseball and Softball!

Until Next Time.