By Tom Waddill
Sports Editor
HUNTSVILLE — The floor at Hornet Gym sure looked crowded Wednesday afternoon. That’s because there were 13 players running around like crazy — five on offense and eight on defense.
To get his team ready for Friday’s Region III semifinal game against Houston Yates, Huntsville coach Larry Carlson wisely devised a practice schedule that includes a hectic press-break drill complete with eight yellow-shirted defenders.
Carlson even convinced Lady Hornets head coach Jay Oliphant and a couple of sprinters from the high school track team to help him simulate the pace the Hornets are going to face for 32 minutes at the Merrell Center on Friday night.
Afterward, Carlson appeared upbeat.
“Today’s practice was real good,” the Hornets coach said. “We pressed all over the floor with eight guys thinking that the extra pressure will get us ready, and I think it will. We also worked on our transition defense.
“To beat Yates, there are two big keys. First, you have to really minimize your turnovers. They force so many of them, but you’ve got to take care of the ball against their press. They also throw the ball in so quickly that you’ve got to be ready with your transition defense. We can’t be walking back after we score because they’ll throw it the length of the floor and get easy baskets that way.”
The Hornets were huffing and puffing after Wednesday’s workout, but they are pumped about the opportunity to play the top-ranked team in Texas, and the No. 1 team in the nation, for a spot in the Region III finals.
“I’m kind of excited about it,” sophomore guard Daniel Hazlewood said. “We get to play the number one team in the nation. I haven’t even played anybody that’s in the top five in the state. It’s crazy.”
Yates, the defending state champions of Class 4A, has won all 30 of its games this season. The Lions have done so in impressive fashion, scoring 118 points on average and giving up only 64.
Coach Greg Wise has taken his team to Hawaii this season for a tournament. That’s where the Lions had their closest call, eking out a 97-96 victory over the ninth-ranked team in the country, Saints Neumann and Goretti High School from south Philadelphia.
Since returning to Houston, the Lions have breezed in all but a couple of their games. Last week, Houston Jones hung around for a little more than a half, but Yates pulled away for a 114-80 win to set up Friday’s meeting with Huntsville.
The Hornets know all about the Lions. Huntsville and Yates played at the Merrell Center in the region quarterfinals two years ago, with the Lions narrowly escaping with a 63-62 win.
Yates also has gotten tons of media exposure this season, some of it after to the record-setting 170-35 pounding they put on Houston Lee, but much of it due to the Lions’ growing reputation as one of the most talented high school teams ever.
“They’re a little faster than the team we played two years ago,” Huntsville senior Marvin Dunbar said of the Lions. “I think they’re way deeper, too. Two years ago some of their main guys were sophomores. They’re seniors now, and they’re way more experienced.”
Carlson agrees with his veteran point guard. With seniors Brandon Peters (Western Kentucky), Joseph Young (Providence) and Darius Gardner (Stephen F. Austin) leading the way, the Lions pounce on their opposition immediately after the opening tip and they don’t let up until the final buzzer rings.
“They’ve basically got four stud athletes out there with a 6-foot-9 kid who can jump out of the building,” Carlson said. “They’re long and rangy. They’re faster than they were two years ago, more physical and they are hungrier for sure. This team has been to the top already and they want to get back there.”
Friday’s game between Huntsville and Yates is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m., after the first semifinal game between Brenham and La Marque, which will start at 6.
