| Senior-led
team 13-4 under rookie head coach
By JOSHUA
COFFMAN
Landmark News Service
Familiarity breeds contempt — or
so the old cultural proverb says. However, in the case of the
2007 edition of the Owen County High School boys’ basketball
team, familiarity has bred success.
Starting five seniors and bringing another off the bench, the
Rebels have already won as many games as it did all of last season,
and first-year head coach Devin Duvall credits much of the winning
to the players knowing one another well.
“These guys have been playing together for a long time,”
he said.
Despite this being his first year heading the program, the players’
familiarity with their coach has also lent a great deal toward
the team’s 13-4 record going into the All-A regional tournament,
which begins tonight.
A former all-region star for the Rebels in the mid-’90s,
Duvall spent five seasons coaching the junior varsity team at
OCHS, winning the 31st District JV title last season.
He came back to his alma mater after playing college ball at Berea
and working as an assistant at Carroll County High School.
“When the opportunity came to go back home and teach and
coach, I took advantage of it,” said Duvall, whose family
is from Owen County.
He took over as head coach after Gran Mefford retired last season.
OCHS co-Athletic Director Randy Bishop, who oversees the boys’
basketball program, said this year’s team has reignited
excitement among the fan base not seen in years.
“Crowds are coming back more than they have in the past,”
he said. “There are more kids showing up at the games.”
Bishop described Duvall as an upbeat coach who cares about his
players both on and off the court.
“He’s a very interactive coach,” he said. “He’s
out there doing the drills with the boys. … He’s moving
up and down the sidelines coaching.”
Ken Hockensmith, the school’s other co-athletic director,
said Duvall is doing well “not just because of the record.
There’s a positive attitude.”
“He’s not your typical first-year coach,” he
said.
The up-tempo system the Rebels run has been a staple of the program
for several seasons, and some ideas were brought in when Duvall
first arrived, he said.
But the system has worked especially well this season, with the
team yielding more steals and assists per game and leading the
Eighth Region in scoring margin.
The Rebels, 5-3 in district play, are beating opponents by an
average of 13.2 points per game. The team was also tied with South
Oldham for third in the region in scoring as of Friday, putting
up 64.1 points a game, just behind Simon Kenton (65.4) and Gallatin
County (64.9).
Duvall said the impact of senior Daniel Neeley, a transfer from
Owsley County who leads the team in scoring at 20.1 points per
game, has provided the team a balanced attack.
“When you got a kid who can consistently get you 20 points
a game … he gets everyone involved,” Duvall said.
Two other players, seniors Zack Miller (10.5) and Jared Perkins
(12.1), also average double figures.
Duvall notes the intelligence of his players both on and off the
court. He said the team has a combined grade-point average “in
the high threes.”
“They’re a very smart bunch,” he said. “They
play very well together. They play very unselfish.”
The Rebels hope to outwit and outplay their opponents in the all-A
tournament, when they tip off at 7 p.m. tonight against Williamstown.
Their opening opponent is winless on the season. The winner will
advance to play Walton-Verona.
“That’s going to be a big test for us,” Duvall
said of the potential second-round match-up. “We’re
going to try to go in there Wednesday and take care of business.”
The coach noted that the bracket lays out a road similar to the
2003 season, the last time the Rebels advanced to the All-A state
tournament in Richmond.
“We’re kind of taking the same path,” Duvall
said.
The Rebels faced Williamstown in the opener in 2003 then played
Walton Verona on their way to Richmond.
If the Rebels win those two games, they would likely face Carroll
County or Gallatin County in the final.
A potential fourth rematch with Gallatin County would face the
Rebels against an opponent that has handed them two of their four
losses.
OCHS fell on the road by 24 points on Dec. 23 after beating them
by nine in their first district match-up of the year.
Gallatin County also gave the Rebels their only home loss of the
season, beating OCHS by two in a game that was sent to overtime
when a technical foul late in regulation gave Gallatin two free
throws to tie the game.
The Rebels’ other two losses also came in December in games
decided by a single possession.
OCHS fell to Frankfort by one point in the Snowball Classic on
Dec. 29, and lost its first game of the season to Henry County
51-48 on a buzzer-beater shot that Duvall called “a heartbreaker.”
It was the Rebels’ fourth game in as many days.
“Our post players were tired,” Duvall said. “We
sort of chalked that up at the end of the game and said ‘tonight
wasn’t our night.’”
The Rebels exacted revenge, beating Henry County 72-47 during
homecoming on Jan. 12, pulling away in the second half on turnovers
created by scrappy, full-court pressure.
Duvall said the team worked to get offense out of its defense.
“Play hard, play smart and play together,” he said.
“That’s been our motto for three years. We think if
we can do that then everything else will fall into place.”
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