It was never going to be easy Tuesday night for Polk County, because nothing in this crazy up-and-down season has been for the Wolverines.
But amid all the fouls and free throws and jump ball arrow controversies and everything else that happened on an emotionally charged Senior Night, the Wolverines kept finding a way to overcome the obstacles – and will reap a few rewards because of it.
The final score read 78-72 for Polk County, a win delivered on a night when you couldn’t throw a pass at Polk County’s roster without hitting someone who made a key contribution. It was the essence of a team victory, and in giving head coach Josh McEntire his 50th career win at the school the Wolverines also:
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- Completed a regular-season sweep of Hendersonville, not a common occurrence by any means
- Secured third place in the Western Highlands Conference, which will mean a first-round home game in the WHC tourney. Likely opponent for that game? Hendersonville
- Most importantly, the win made Polk County the second 2A team in the league standings, which means that unless Hendersonville, Owen or Madison get hot and win the WHC tournament, the Wolverines will receive one of the league’s two automatic berths in the state 2A playoffs.
“The ball was in our court,” McEntire said. “We had a chance to keep playing and go to the playoffs. We just had to take advantage of it.
“It means the world. It’s going to give these young kids a chance to see what the playoffs are about, to go on the road and probably play in a tough environment and get a feel for what that is about.”
The young kids, Polk County’s three talented freshmen, were at times on the floor together in the second half, and with Hendersonville (12-11, 4-8) also playing freshman Tykel Landrum, the game occasionally resembled last year’s classic matchups between Polk County and Hendersonville middle schools. Each of the Wolverines’ newcomers played key parts Tuesday – Arnie Twitty had 10 points and seven rebounds, Dillion Overholt had nine points and Holden Owens moved the ball well offensively and helped harass Hendersonville’s perimeter shooters on defense. As impressive as the stats were the way in which the trio handled the environment.
“They finally stepped up and played at a level like we knew they could play,” McEntire said. “Tonight they played on an even keel and they played good basketball.”
And they had company. Hendersonville shot 47 free throws in the game, including 28 in the first half, which means there were a lot of Wolverines accumulating a lot of fouls. But every time someone in blue and white garnered a third or fourth whistle, the Wolverines seemed to plug in a replacement and not skip a beat. And that’s one reason why McEntire celebrated the win with a small leap and fist pump.
“The number one key tonight was that we just kept fighting,” he said. “It didn’t matter who was in foul trouble, the next person came in and did their job. Kids like Jaylin (Wilkins), Holden, Davis (Derkach), they played great. AJ Searcy came in and gave us three or four important minutes. Everyone did what we told them to do.”
So did that Wheeler kid. A Hendersonville fan wandered over at halftime and asked, “So how many does Jamal have?” After watching Jamal Wheeler score a school-record 40 points in the team’s first meeting, a 91-78 Polk overtime win, the Bearcats and their fans no doubt wondered what the junior would do Tuesday for an encore. He scored 35, including 13 in the fourth and the team’s final six points. Wheeler added seven rebounds and five steals to his point total, with Wilkins grabbing 11 rebounds to lead Polk on the boards.
Down 55-53 entering the fourth period, Polk County scored the first six points of the final quarter, though the first of those baskets ended with junior Wes Mullis being helped off the court with an ankle injury (he had the ankle taped and came back in the game late). The Wolverines kept the lead anywhere from two to six points for the next few minutes and took a 74-69 lead with 1:16 remaining on a pair of Wheeler free throws.
Landrum answered with a basket, and Ben Davis then hit one of two free throws with 48 seconds remaining to cut the lead to 74-72. Hendersonville then forced a turnover and Michael Schmidt was fouled with 28 seconds left, but Schmidt, the team’s top free-throw shooter entering the night, missed both foul shots. In the ensuing tussle after the second miss, a jump ball was called, and the possession arrow pointed toward Hendersonville. But both Polk and Hendersonville scorekeepers had possession favoring Polk County, so officials awarded the ball to the Wolverines. Hendersonville called a timeout to continue the discussion about the arrow, but with both scorebooks showing the same thing, the Wolverines maintained the ball.
Wheeler hit two free throws with 18 seconds left, Derkach blocked a shot at the other end and kicked the loose ball to Wheeler, who then hit two more free throws with six seconds remaining to end it.
Polk County, which has had its struggles at the foul line this season, hit 17-of-23 free throws in the game, including 14-of-18 in the second half. Hendersonville, 20-of-28 from the foul line in the first half, finished 27-of-47, including just 4-of-12 in the fourth quarter.
After a 21-21 tie at the end of the first period, free throws helped Hendersonville close the second quarter with an 18-2 flurry, turning a 33-26 deficit into a 44-35 halftime lead.
“We gave up an 18-2 run and were still down just nine points,” McEntire said. “I told them to keep fighting because we were going to get back into the game.
“Every time we needed someone to step up, they did. Everybody who was the next man up came in and did their job. I’m more proud of that than anything else.”
Polk County Scoring
Jamal Wheeler 35, Arnie Twitty 10, Dillion Overholt 9, Davis Derkach 8, Wes Mullis 8, Jaylin Wilkins 4, Jason Chupp 4
