Tourney brought intensity

By By Todd Thompson, Hartselle Enquirer
There was little doubt early Saturday afternoon that the 2010 Morgan County Basketball Tournament was headed to a post-season like atmosphere when the stands at Falkville High School were nearly filled for the freshman boys’ championship game.
The intensity kept growing through the afternoon and peaked somewhere during the two varsity games.
By the time Priceville won the boys’ junior varsity championship, there was no arguing that basketball was, indeed, on the main stage in the county.
Seats were at a premium by the time the varsity games tipped off and the atmosphere was nothing short of electric.
Hosting a tournament is tough at any venue, but the demands put on the smallest school in the county to host big crowds for five days can be tough. Falkville administrators, coaches, teachers and supporters - many parents of Falkville players - put on a first-class tournament that met every challenge during the week.
When the gym looked like it was about to burst at the seams Saturday night during the varsity girls’ championship game, the Falkville staff added chairs around the court to handle the demand.
Much of the credit needs to go to Falkville principal Sue Wood and assistant principal Keith Wilemon.
Falkville didn’t have a team in the semifinals, but the school put on a first-class event to the final buzzer.
Most importantly, though, was the fact that despite an overflow crowd and the intense battles for county bragging rights, there were no major problems during the week of games.
For the official count, Brewer won three of the five championships. West Morgan and Priceville both won a title each.
Hartselle didn’t fare as well. With teams in four of the five championships, the Tigers were unable to win on the final day.
While teams will mark the success or failure of the tournament based on their on-court results, this was a win-win situation for everyone involved.
Football may be king in Alabama, but for one week at least, basketball stood tall in the spotlight.
Sports editor Todd Thompson can be reached at 773-6566 or at todd.thompson@hartselleenquirer.com