Undersized junior varsity completes perfect season
By LARRY HILLIARD Ledger Sports Editor larry@gaffneyledger.com

No height. No depth. No Emison Hughes. No David Dewberry.

Not a problem for the Gaffney junior varsity basketball team.

Playing without a starter over 6'-1" and Dewberry and Hughes, who were called up to the varsity, the Indians finished with a perfect 20-0 record.

"We only had eight players and we never had a full team," Gaffney coach Mark Ireton said. "Most nights, we played somebody bigger. But we had a lot of speed. We only had seven or eight players, so everybody knew they had to play."

Bubba Wright and Darius Dawkins were the team's tallest players. Wright and Dawkins provided the inside power while Jeff Brown manufactured baskets as the team's leading scorer.

"He just has a nose for the ball," Ireton said. "He plays hard. He's always running the floor and he's opportunistic."

Bo Davidson, Chris Munsterman, Stephon Adams, Eddie Jefferies and Parris Funderburke round out the roster. Hughes, a point guard, and Dewberry, a 6-3 post player, started the season on the junior varsity but were called up to the varsity. Both players have been major contributors for the varsity.

Ireton said the undefeated season wasn't a goal.

"When we started the season, I didn't think it was possible," he said. "But the junior varsity practiced with the varsity and it made us better and tougher."

The junior varsity needed that toughness with several close contests, including overtime wins over Spartanburg and Dorman. Against the Vikings, Wright hit free throws to send the game into overtime before Brown sank the game-winner as time expired in the extra session.