
Levi Randolph, Bob Jones
File photo by Joe Boyd
Plenty of juicy storylines emerged from last weekend’s state finals in Alabama, including a three-overtime championship game at the Class 2A level. But none were quite as unexpected or inspirational as unranked
Bob Jones (Madison, Ala.) knocking off top-ranked
Homewood (Homewood, Ala.) for the Class 6A title.
Jones finished the season with 20 wins and 14 losses – a staggering number of setbacks for a state champion. Sparkman (Harvest, Ala.) was responsible for dealing the Patriots three of those setbacks only to see the tables turned in the regional finals.
This wasn’t quite a Hoosiers replay, however. The Patriots were the 6A runner-up a year ago and returned several talented performers from that team, including 6-foot-6 senior forward Jose Long, 6-5 junior guard Levi Randolph and 6-3 sophomore forward Reggie Ragland.
But Long and Ragland were lost to injuries before the season started. Those missing pieces combined with a grueling schedule pointed toward 2009-10 being a disappointing year for the Madison school. Bob Jones’ record was just 12-13 entering February.
According to head coach Danny Petty, the turnaround may have started as late as Feb. 12 at Hazel Green.
“We were down 13 in the fourth quarter and came back to beat them in overtime,” Petty said. “I remember thinking after that game, ‘This was something special.’”
The Patriots followed with four wins in a row – including a regional final win over nemesis Sparkman – to capture the state title.
Randolph, who scored 20 in the final and 19 in the semis with 10 boards, earned state tournament MVP honors and solidified his status as one of the fastest-rising juniors in the country.
“Levi Randolph did a good job of leading us back,” Petty said. “He became a real good leader and a really good passer. He makes everybody else better.”
While Saturday night’s victory gave Bob Jones High School its first boys basketball state title, Petty isn’t new to postseason success. The 59-year old coach also took J.O. Johnson (Huntsville, Ala.) to the 6A championship in 1987 and Madison Academy (Madison, Ala.) to the 3A title in 2006.
But Petty isn’t nearly as excited about updating his resume as he is about the message Jones’ season sends to players about perseverance, hard work and self-belief.
“It’s a great life lesson for the kids,” Petty said. “We had a real tough schedule. We played in three really tough tournaments. Watching them improve from the beginning of the year to the end (was really special). We just put it all together and everybody played their role. It was a total team effort.”
As for injured standouts Long and Ragland, both returned to action in the final two games. While Long made only a brief appearance in the closing seconds against Homewood, Ragland was cleared before the semifinals and gave the Pats an emotional lift. The 6-3, 230-pound sophomore is a freakish athletic talent already earning attention from Southeastern Conference football programs.
“We planned on putting him in there for a minute or two to see how things went,” Petty said. “He went through warm-ups but the crowd didn’t have a clue he was going to play.
“The crowd started hollering when he went in. I get goose bumps just thinking about it. We ran a play to him and he turns and scores, then goes down and gets a big defensive rebound.”
With 10 non-seniors on the roster, another championship run in 2010-11 could be in the works at Bob Jones. Don’t count on another 14-loss season, however.
More state championship highlights from around the country;
MAINE
* Cheverus (Portland, Maine) captured its second Class A title in three years with a 55-50 win over Edward Little (Auburn, Maine) on Saturday night. All-Name team candidate Indiana Faithfull led the way with 23 points.
NEVADA
* Nationally-ranked Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) captured the 4A state title with a 69-48 win over Canyon Springs (North Las Vegas, Nev.). The Gaels were dominant against in-state competition, winning all but one Sunset Southwest League games by 20 points or more. No. 6 Mater Dei and No. 10 Findlay Prep were the only teams to beat Gorman (30-2), ranked No. 13 in this week’s Xcellent 25.
* Incline (Incline Village, Nev.) defeated Lincoln County (Panaca, Nev.) for the 2A title, 71-64, despite a heroic, 41-point effort from Dantley Walker. The Lincoln County junior guard also went for 43 points in a 100-83 semifinal victory over Silver State.