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From the Sports Deskwith Carey Phillips |
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Smoky Mountain showed flashes of having a good basketball team this year, but when it was over the Mustangs were 7-16 for their seventh straight season of single digit wins.
"We got off to a promising start," Coach Scott Hartbarger said. "I thought we might have the team to go to the playoffs, but our conference was so well balanced. There were no easy wins in the league." Hartbarger said in the preseason he thought his team had a realistic chance to finish among the top four in the league. Even though they finished tied for fifth in the Western Athletic Conference at 3-9, they nearly tied for a playoff spot. In the season finale at Enka, the Mustangs led for three quarters before faltering down the stretch. A win would have meant a tie with the Jets for the final playoff spot and forced a rematch in the league tournament to see which team advanced to the post season. "Overall, it was one of the most enjoyable years," the coach said. "I had quality young men. I didn't have an academic problem, and I didn't have one discipline problem. I have to believe somewhere down the road character will win out. Maybe being in some of those close games will carry over into next season." The string of wins in single digits was definitely frustrating for Hartbarger. "The most disappointing thing is when you don't take care of the teams you're supposed to," he said. Even though the Mustangs lost, Hartbarger said the first game with Franklin was a high point of the season. The Mustangs held a 14-point lead at halftime before coming up short. Another highlight he listed was keeping pace with Enka for three quarters in the last game of the regular season. Sweeping Tuscola in two conference games was also a highlight. On the down side were home games against Andrews and Enka when the Mustangs were out of the contest almost before it started. Seniors included Michael Wheatley, Anthony Dyer, Phillip Wade and Derrick Hawk. "Michael worked hard in the off season," Hartbarger said. "It was very exciting to watch him play this year. I was proud of the leadership he provided for us. He played hard every night and did everything I asked him to." Wheatley was the team's leading scorer with an average of 18.0 points per game. "Anthony had his best year," the coach said. "He was a steady scorer for us. He also worked hard in the off season. I was proud of the effort he gave me." Dyer finished second in scoring at 12.6 points per game. "Phillip was asked to play a lot more minutes than he had before," Hartbarger said. "He had some real good games and gave a good effort every night." Hawk was in his first year of high school basketball. "If Derrick had played all four years, he would have been able to get in the flow better," the coach said. "For not playing four years, he really stepped up and helped us in quite a few games. I was glad he joined us. I enjoyed coaching him." The team's juniors were Darius Bryson, Allen Sutton, Michael Ritchie, Adam Holt, Kyle Clayton, Luke Bell and Cody Long. "Darius didn't think he was going to play this year," Hartbarger said. "He missed most of our spring and summer workouts but still contributed. Next year we're looking for really big things from him. He's our best defensive player." "We asked Allen to play inside, and he did a very good job as far as going inside and getting some rebounds and playing very solid defense," the coach said. "About halfway through the year, Michael stepped in and became a starter," Hartbarger said. "He did a solid job in that role." "Adam didn't see a lot of playing time, but he always worked hard in practice," the coach said. "With some work in the off season, he can help us next year." "Kyle did not see much playing time, but he also worked hard in practice," Hartbarger said. "With some work in the weight room, he can help us out inside." "Luke had some good games for us," the coach said. "He came off the bench and gave us some good inside minutes. With some work in the weight room, he could be a force inside for us next year." "Cody kept a good attitude all year," Hartbarger said. "With some work this summer, he can contribute next year." Sophomores were Justin Roper and Jason Bennett. "For a sophomore, Justin did a great job running the point," the coach said. "He's going to have to work on his shooting and ball handling this summer. He's such a competitor. I look for good things from him the next two years." "Jason has the talent to be a force in the league," Hartbarger said. "He just needs to commit himself to our workouts this summer and develop some confidence in himself. He's blessed with quite a bit of ability." Looking to next season, Hartbarger said the conference will be much the same with Erwin and Franklin the teams to beat. "We have a good group of young men coming back," the coach said. "We'll have the height that we need next year." He added, "I'd like to thank the community for their support. We will get this thing turned around. Please be patient." Hartbarger expressed thanks to his assistant coach, Dennis Proffitt, and to Jimmy Roper and Jeff Carpenter, the JV coaches. He also thanked Cindi Simmons, SM's women's coach for her help and support, and his father, Jim Hartbarger, for his help coaching this season. |
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