Can't do what South has done without bench help

By Rex Kirts

Alex Forney, Michael Bower and Trae Washington are the latest examples in what has become a major force in South basketball.
That's outstanding contributions from players off the bench.
Without it the Panthers probably wouldn't have gone undefeated and won the state championship two years ago. David Blackwell, Marcus Etnier and Jake Mulinix were absolutely essential in getting the team to the finals and then beating Fort Wayne Snider in the title game.
The relief job of Bower and Washington was the key in the Panthers' regional title game win over Castle last Saturday. When Dee Davis went to the bench in the third quarter with four fouls, Washington, Bower and Ben Stowell hit shots to not only stop Castle's momentum but extend the lead from six points to 12 going into the fourth quarter.
WITH THAT CUSHION, the Panthers dominated the fourth quarter and won by 19 points.
Sitting the bench requires patience. It also requires concentration on the action because the subs are expected to know what's required when they're called.
But in the case of this year's team, which is 24-2 going in the semistate Saturday against North Central, the subs understand why they are sitting. And it's OK.
"When we're winning, the kids in front of us are better, so it's not so hard," said Forney, a senior who's prized for his understanding of how to play the game.
Forney and juniors Washington and Bower go hard in practice, and they do it knowing their game minutes will probably be limited. None of them feel cheated, though, none feel that practicing hard should guarantee game minutes.
"I might as well do the best Ican," Forney said. He pushes those ahead of him. "But they're not worried about me taking their job. They're better offensively."
At the start of the season Bower, the starting quarterback in football, knew he'd be a sub in basketball, and he never flinched at the prospect.
"I SAID TO COACH HOLMES I didn't care as long as I can help the team. I can try to bring energy, and that's fun."
Bower brings a ton of energy. He's non-stop and bats away lots of balls and gets loose balls and rebounds. He's also strong on defense.
"Since I was growing up in sports I was told to go as hard as I can," Bower said. "Get every loose ball, every rebound, try to play defense as best as I can.
"I always loved watching Marcus (Etnier) when he played with Matthew (Bower's older brother). Marcus was kind of my mentor my freshman year in football. So I've learned a lot from him.
"In practice you just go as hard as you can. If you're not going to play many minutes you can still make the team better."
The main purpose of Washington, a multi-purpose football player, is to take over the point when Davis comes out. Davis, a Mr. Basketball candidate, doesn't come out much.
"IT WOULD BE HARDER (sitting the bench) if I wasn't behind Dee," Washington said. "He is creative on the go. Guarding him in practice youi think you've seen everything, but you see something you've never seen before. It's rough guarding him."
Obviously, sitting the bench hasn't created chemistry problems with the trio.
"We've been around each other a long time," Washington said. "We're always smiling and laughing. It's awesome.
"Coach Holmes always makes us work hard, but we have a lot of fun. It's great. It's the most fun I've had playing basketball in a while."
The Panthers struggled in the sectional opener against North, and that was a wakeup call for them. Practices became more intense during regional week, and the Panthers played tough in the wins over New Albany and Castle.
"WE WEREN'T RELAXED sectional week," Forney said. "We were just relieved to get it over with. We thought teams might try slow-downs against us, but in the regional, we knew teams were going to play us straight up."
They know North Central (22-2) will come at them hard and with great speed.
"North Central is obviously talented," Bower said. "We've just got to go out there and play our game, focus and do what we've been doing."
South has been in the semistate four of the last six years. Saturday's class 4A game will start about 3:35 p.m. at Southport High School in Indianapolis.