02-23-2012, 03:47 AM
Two years ago the Doss High School boysâ basketball team finished 4-23, falling to Evangel Christian in the first round of the 22nd District Tournament.
âA disaster,â current Doss senior Rex White said about that season.
But with the guidance of second-year coach K.C. Goodin, the senior leadership of White and Stephon Bryant and the emergence of sophomore Montrell Little, Doss has turned things around.
The Dragons showcased their improvement Tuesday night, rolling to an 86-63 rout of Iroquois in a 22nd District semifinal at DeSales.
Doss improved to 17-11 and clinched a spot in the Sixth Region Tournament for the first time since 2009. The Dragons already have secured their first winning season since 2006-07.
âTo get to the regional tournament this fast, Iâm so proud,â said Goodin, who replaced Dwight Bransford as the Dragonsâ coach before the 2010-11 season. âTheyâve worked hard and havenât complained. Everything Iâve asked them to do, theyâve done it.
âThis is a huge step in building our program back to where it was.â
Doss avenged a 59-50 loss to Iroquois on Dec. 13 and advanced to Fridayâs 7:30 p.m. district final against the winner of Wednesdayâs Butler-Western game.
Little, a 6-foot-3 forward, led the Dragons with a career-high 26 points and added 11 rebounds and five assists. White (16 points, five assists) and Bryant (10 points) also scored in double figures.
Montez Buford scored 19 points to lead Iroquois, which missed its first eight shots of the second quarter and trailed 34-16 at halftime.
â(Doss) came out and did a couple of things we werenât expecting,â Raiders coach Michael Stinnett said. âThen they got that big lead, and we just panicked.â
Doss trailed just once, 3-2, and opened the second quarter with a 12-2 run to take a 29-14 lead on Littleâs 3-pointer at the 3:20 mark.
Goodin said Littleâs presence inside has opened the offense for his teammates on the perimeter.
âThe first time we played (Iroquois), he didnât score,â Goodin said. âTonight he was a man around the basket. That helps us because our guys on the outside can go one-on-one. Iâll take my chances with our guys going one-on-one.â
âA disaster,â current Doss senior Rex White said about that season.
But with the guidance of second-year coach K.C. Goodin, the senior leadership of White and Stephon Bryant and the emergence of sophomore Montrell Little, Doss has turned things around.
The Dragons showcased their improvement Tuesday night, rolling to an 86-63 rout of Iroquois in a 22nd District semifinal at DeSales.
Doss improved to 17-11 and clinched a spot in the Sixth Region Tournament for the first time since 2009. The Dragons already have secured their first winning season since 2006-07.
âTo get to the regional tournament this fast, Iâm so proud,â said Goodin, who replaced Dwight Bransford as the Dragonsâ coach before the 2010-11 season. âTheyâve worked hard and havenât complained. Everything Iâve asked them to do, theyâve done it.
âThis is a huge step in building our program back to where it was.â
Doss avenged a 59-50 loss to Iroquois on Dec. 13 and advanced to Fridayâs 7:30 p.m. district final against the winner of Wednesdayâs Butler-Western game.
Little, a 6-foot-3 forward, led the Dragons with a career-high 26 points and added 11 rebounds and five assists. White (16 points, five assists) and Bryant (10 points) also scored in double figures.
Montez Buford scored 19 points to lead Iroquois, which missed its first eight shots of the second quarter and trailed 34-16 at halftime.
â(Doss) came out and did a couple of things we werenât expecting,â Raiders coach Michael Stinnett said. âThen they got that big lead, and we just panicked.â
Doss trailed just once, 3-2, and opened the second quarter with a 12-2 run to take a 29-14 lead on Littleâs 3-pointer at the 3:20 mark.
Goodin said Littleâs presence inside has opened the offense for his teammates on the perimeter.
âThe first time we played (Iroquois), he didnât score,â Goodin said. âTonight he was a man around the basket. That helps us because our guys on the outside can go one-on-one. Iâll take my chances with our guys going one-on-one.â