By Thomas Sellers Jr.
The Brighton vs. Munford basketball rivalry in recent history has included a who’s who of epic names.
For the Munford Cougars some of the legends include Jonathan Starks, Andrea’ Bell, Jayson Williams and the Cunningham twins. Brighton countered with players like Ricky Foster, Taelyr Gatlin, Zack Lewis, Aaron Alston and the Cooper brothers over the years.
Tipton County products have made the neighborhood/District 13-3A rivalry competitive and a competition worth writing about. The latest chapter took place Jan. 19 in the Munford Gymnasium. Normal plot lines like seesaw battle, clutch shots, overtime and buzzer beater were a part of the narrative. But the twist in the 63-60 overtime victory for the Munford Cougars was the person releasing the game-winning shot. With less than 5 seconds on the clock in the extra period, Bartlett transfer Keenan Thompson found himself with the basketball.
The senior guard took a dribble and stepped into a three-pointer that won the game over the rival Brighton Cardinals and improved the Cougars to 2-1 in league play. Thompson took off toward his family to celebrate the moment. Right behind him was a pride of Cougars.
“Huge confidence booster for him,” Munford Head Coach Nic Buford said. “But the thing is he’s not lacking in the confidence department. He had the confidence to take that shot. He’s not lacking. He’s a kid that has come in and fit in well with the school, the team. The teachers are fond of him and the kids love him.
“From day one when he got here, the kids have embraced him,” he continued. “From day one he has been a great addition. I think overall the greatest part for me was to see them all come together to enjoy this. For them to get in the locker room and celebrate and enjoy this. We do have a 24-hour rule to mourn a loss or enjoy a win.”
The outcome of the latest Brighton/Munford hardwood showdown was in doubt for almost 36 minutes. The Cardinals saw their 10-7 first quarter lead evaporate into a Munford 17-11 advantage heading into the second quarter.
Murray Norman sparked a 10-1 run for the Cougars with a basket. The Cougars were paced by Javaris Tolton and Shane Cox during that stretch.
Brighton had the answer in the second quarter led by senior guard Kejuan Dyson. As his fellow senior DeMaryo Gatlin battled leg cramps and nagging injuries throughout the night, Dyson shoulder the load with a three-pointer to make the score 17-14. Brighton proceeded with a 10-2 run to deadlock the game at 21-21.
Jordan Bell scored the only bucket for Munford during that stretch. Gatlin persevered during the second quarter to score on a three-point play. But he left the game with 3:45 remaining in the first half.
Dyson and Ken Hennings ran the offense setting up interior player Darrien Lewis for the tying bucket. Both teams scored 3 points to end the first half to head into the locker rooms tied 24-24.
“We’re getting to the point that we’re turning it on at the right time,” Buford said. “So I can’t really be mad at them. Games like this you’ve got to have a little Lady Luck on your side. I like to first say Coach (Stan) Gatlin does an excellent job. I knew there would be things he does to confuse us.
“Little things like that but to pull out a game like this you’ve got to find yourself,” he continued. “And I think tonight we found ourselves because we’ve been in a lot of close games and we’re starting to find out what you need to do to pull out these types of games. When you’ve been in 7 close games that are decided by 14 points and they’re all loses, this is a familiar situation. So it’s almost like we’re finding ourselves at the right time.”
Munford found themselves up 39-31 in the third quarter. Michael Lee broke the 24-24 deadlock with a triple for the Cougars. Dyson had all 7 points for the Cardinals during that stretch. Tolton was the driving force for the Cougars with 8 points of his own. The power forward achieved a three-point play with 4:50 left in the period that gave the Cougars a 30-29 lead. Tolton second old fashion three-pointer put Munford ahead 36-29. After Shane Cox drilled a triple, the Cougars were ahead 8 points.
Gatlin returned in time to rally his Cardinals with a 9-2 run to close the gap. Gatlin his a shot and Dyson hit another three-pointer. Hennings hit a shot to make the score 41-38 entering the fourth quarter.
Dyson was the go-to guy for Brighton down the stretch hitting two crucial three-pointers. Munford was paced by Levi Poindexter, Braden Lewis, Lee and Cox.
After Dyson deadlock the game at 50-50 with a triple, Munford’s new hero emerged. Thompson hit a pair of foul shots to put the Cougars ahead 52-50.
As time ticked away in regulation, Brighton’s Jay Dancy found himself leaping to the rim for a game-tying layup. The 52-52 tie was broken by Dancy in overtime with a pair of free throws.
Overtime remained close with Brighton ahead 60-57 after a Dyson bucket. Thompson had the answer for Munford with a three-point play. Tied at 60-60, the basketball found itself in several hands near mid-court until Thompson emerged with the roundball.
He calmly stepped and drilled his game-winning three-pointer to end the limited crowd into an eruption.
For first-year Head Coach Buford, the Thompson three-pointer was a signature moment.
“As for me I’m hitting the computer tonight to watch film,” Buford concluded. “But for them they get to enjoy this and it’s a confidence booster. This is a signature moment up to this moment in my first season here.”
