Story By Heath Hambrick
Friday night at the DeKalb County Schools Coliseum, the Plainview Bears defeated the Geraldine Bulldogs 70-42 to win their fifth straight varsity boys DeKalb County Tournament title.
For Plainview, this run has occurred under the leadership of three different head coaches: Robi Coker, Cale Black, and Cade Willingham. The coaches have changed, but the one thing that has remained the same is the standard of Plainview basketball.
The Bears led at the end of each quarter break (30-11, 38-24, 54-34, 70-42).
“I’m happy to see us coming out and play a full 32 minutes of basketball like we are capable of. We have played up and down in some games this season. We were more consistent in how we played tonight, and I really enjoyed watching our guys play like that,” said Plainview Head Coach Cade Willingham.
In the first quarter, Plainview raced out to a double-digit lead thanks to the shooting of Cy Traylor, Grant Nickelson, and Sawyer Wilborn, who all scored six points in the first quarter. The Bears employed a strong defensive strategy to force turnovers, which they converted into points.
In the second quarter, the Bulldogs settled in and outscored Plainview 13-8 thanks to AJ Carter’s seven points. The Bears' Owen Hope got a breakout dunk that brought the fans to their feet in the packed DCSC. Plainview took a 14-point halftime lead.
“The great thing about Owen is that he is always the same guy. He never gets too high or too low. He puts in the effort, he is dedicated, he understands his role, and he plays with great intensity. He is not just scoring the ball; he is doing the little things to be successful on both ends of the floor,” said Willingham.
In the third quarter, Cooper Johnson led the way with eight points, but it wasn’t enough to cut into the Plainview lead as Hope and Traylor combined for 11 points to extend the lead to 20 by the end of the quarter.
In the final quarter, Plainview outscored Geraldine 16-8 with Traylor leading the way with six points. The Bears' defense effectively prevented the Bulldogs from scoring threes. Geraldine failed to make a three-point basket the entire game. The Bulldogs scored most of their points in the final quarter from the free-throw line, successfully making 6 out of 10 attempts.
Cy Traylor led the Bears with 21 points, Owen Hope scored 15 points, and Grant Nickelson added 10 points. Cooper Johnson led Geraldine with 19 points.
“We have to continue to be consistent in practice every day. We have to continue to improve to get to where we want to be, and we hope to be playing our best basketball as we head down the stretch of the season,” said Willingham.
Plainview improved to 18-4 as Geraldine fell to 17-10 on the season.
All Tournament Team: Jadiel Gonzalez, Crossville; Patrick Wilbanks, Fyffe; Axl Williams, Ider; Cooper Johnson, AJ Carter, and Braxton Franklin, Geraldine; Cy Traylor, Grant Nickelson, Sawyer Wilborn, and Owen Hope (MVP) from Plainview.
