E’Jay Ward admits he has been a bit hard on Marquis Hinton.
The Tyner basketball player better known as “Mookie” has often tantalized his coach with great stretches of play, but on other days he plays tentatively. In Thursday night’s Region 3-AA championship game against Signal Mountain at Red Bank, Hinton scored a game-high 19 points off the bench as the Rams avenged last week’s loss in the district title game with a 59-46 win.
“I told my guys that any given night a role player needs to step up,” Ward said. “Yesterday it was Kam Dozier, and tonight it was Marquis Hinton. He did a fantastic job off the bench, and he’s a kid I’ve been riding all year to embrace the little. I’m little and it’s an advantage at times, and tonight he used it to his advantage.”
Tyner (19-10) will host Upperman in Monday’s sectional round. Upperman lost 72-48 in the 4-AA title game to Livingston, which will host Signal Mountain (21-13) on Monday.
The diminutive Hinton, who’s listed at 5-foot-7, scored 10 of his points in the second quarter Thursday as Tyner went from leading by four to holding a 26-12 lead at halftime. Many of his points came off drive-and-dish plays by point guard Jeremy Elston or quick outlets off defensive rebounds from Solomon Bridgeman.