Ty Johnson, 'Books and Basketball'
Back in January, we wrote the article, Ty Johnson, 'Accepting the Challenge.' Johnson took over the Cox Mill basketball program this past season. Expectations were low after Cox Mill head coach Jody Barbee announced his resignation after an unbelievable run. They won two of the last three NCHSAA 3A state championships and graduated the entire starting lineup including McDonald All American and Duke signee Wendell Moore, Caleb Stone-Carrawell (UNC-Charlotte), Khalid Davis, Cody Cline, and Malcolm Morgan. Moore averaged 25.3 PPG, Stone-Carrawell 16.9 PPG, Khalid Davis 11.3 PPG, Cody Cline 8.9 PPG, and Malcolm Morgan 5.8 PPG. As the old saying goes, 'the cupboard was bare' for the 2019-20 season. That being said, no one bothered to tell Cox Mill first year head coach Ty Johnson and the returners for the new season.
Moving back to the area allowed coach Johnson to form his own culture, but very few media pundits expected much out of this team and rightfully so. Cox Mill lost 98% of their scoring and anytime you add a new coach and inexperienced players, there is a transition period. That being said, the transition period didn't take long as Cox Mill finished the season with an impressive 25-4 record, plus they won both the South Piedmont 3A regular season and conference championship.
Coach Johnson brought in the motto 'PTP' which stands for Program Team Player and the 'we over me' mentality. Everyone stepped on the basketball court and also in the classroom. Sophomore Jaquava Propst-Allison led the way averaging 15.1 PPG, 5.8 RPG and 4.4 APG which is the team high for each category. Seniors Wesley Poindexter and Bailey Gentile averaged 10.7 PPG and 10.4 PPG respectively. In addition, Cox Mill got additional scoring from junior John Anthony Baker with 9.1 PPG, while sophomore Karon Boyd and junior Chris Hunter averaged 8.9 PPG and 8.7 PPG respectively, not to mention sophomore Marcus Morgan comes in at 5.4 PPG.
But more importantly, the team excelled in the classroom as well. As we have often stated, 'The work ethic of the classroom often flows over to the basketball court and this was just the case in point with Cox Mill. Often, young players who pay attention in the classroom usually pay attention on the basketball court. They are eager to listen, learn, not to mention they embrace the opportunity to be coached. Ten of the players on Cox Mill's team had a 3.5 GPA or higher, which is a testament to the players and the coaching staff. For Cox Mill, they have achieved success on the basketball court, but in the classroom as well.
Wesley Poindexter 4.7 GPA
Bailey Gentile 4.5 GPA
Noah McClanahan 3.97 GPA
John Anthony Baker 3.7 GPA
Kendall Woolridge 3.6 GPA
Chris Hunter 3.5 GPA
Jayden Lawrence 3.5 GPA
Marcus Morgan 3.5 GPA
Karon Boyd 3.5 GPA
Zach Riddle 3.5 GPA
Photo credit: Todd Maulden/Special to the Independent Tribune