For the second straight time, rival games live up to the hype

Despite a steady drizzle, thousands of basketball fans tracked a path to Newbern for Round 2 of the season series between the respective basketball squads from DCHS and DHS on Friday.

It's fair to say the truest of fans didn't leave disappointed.

As has been said many times, there's nothing better than a packed house when the rivals meet on the hardwood, and Friday it was packed from top to bottom.

The games were high-energy contests with the Lady Choctaw and Choctaw squads both earning victories, and believe it, they both earned the victories.

Along with the rivalry aspect of the games, the teams just don't like each other very much, or so it seems from time to time.

Both contests were physical affairs that brought out some screaming that this player or that player is dirty and so on and so forth, but yet the battle continues year after year.

Some wish the two schools would simply stop playing each other in all sports. Why stop a good thing? Yes, there always seems to be an isolated incident in one form or another that takes place during the course of the night, but these squads feed off of each other.

It's not so much the games that get things headed south, but often times it comes from off the court. Yes, the paying public has a hand in some of the negatives.

Take Friday night for example. Though many found it funny when the DHS student section held up signs naming the different places some of the Dyer County players have come from to get to Newbern, others found it offensive.

When the Dyer County student section began to chant 'reject' every time a certain DHS player touched the ball, while some may have found it humorous, I can't help but wonder how the player felt that was being heckled.

Student sections are great and the support is very much appreciated, but players hear the chants and yes, they read the signs. All in good fun I suppose, but it adds to the rising temperatures too.

The positives however, easily outweigh the negatives. The two contests were very good games, just as they are on most occasions.

The Lady Choctaws snapped a three-game skid against Dyersburg, ultimately earning the victory when K.K. Tate's buzzer-beater rimmed out as time expired. Seconds before the final shot, three to be exact, Dyer County's Brittney Cranford drained a pair from the charity stripe to give her squad a one-point advantage.

After Cranford made the second attempt, the emotion on her face was a picture I won't soon forget. Moments like those are what make the games so much fun to cover. Kids making plays when they really matter, man it just doesn't get much better.

The win over the Lady Trojans was also a first for Derek McCord as head coach of the Lady Choctaw program. While there wasn't a parade in Newbern on Saturday, the win was a big boost for the program.

In the boys' contest, while many believe a near-two-week layoff hampered the Choctaw effort, give credit to Dyersburg for going toe-to-toe with the fast and furious bunch for the second time this season.

Though not into moral victories, Dyersburg head coach Blaine Mahaffey has certainly got the program headed in the right direction. A picture of class, Mahaffey continues to draw praise from the Dyersburg community for the way he seems to be able to get the most out of his squad. His calm demeanor and positive approach with his players has certainly won over many fans once thought gone for good, and the man doesn't whine about much either when things aren't going his way.

As for the Choctaws, good teams find a way to win. A talented bunch to say the least, and the road ahead will be full of possibilities, but they won't come easy.

In two games the two squads have been separated by a total of 12 points, seven the first game and five on Friday. Are the two really that close? Yes they are. While it may appear to be lopsided on paper, that is why they play the game.

Overall, it was a great night of basketball. Sure the students yelled, flashed a sign or two and showed support for their favorite squad, but the games were won and lost on the court, just as they should have been.

See you courtside.

Your comments are welcome at msmith@ stategazette.com