His broken right hand swollen, bruised and bandaged, Blake Buchanan became the embodiment of this season's South Pittsburg boys' basketball team earlier this week.
Just one day after breaking the hand in a District 5-A semifinal game - and despite the constant pain, which limited his minutes on the court and took away any chance of him being a scoring threat - the senior guard continued to find a way to contribute.
A continual defensive nuisance, he helped the Pirates hold Van Buren County to its second-lowest point total of the season, grabbed four rebounds and made a late steal to help seal the program's first district championship in 34 years.
"We had a pretty big celebration. It was a lot of years in the making, and the kids really enjoyed all the attention the town has given them," Pirates coach Grant Webb said. "Blake has been a special player for us. He's a tough kid who can handle the ball, score and defend, so he's done it all and helped get us where we are. I hate that he got hurt. We're going to need some other guys to step up now."
Because nothing has come easy for the Pirates this season, having a rotation of capable players stepping up at different times to find a way to win has become the team's persona.
It began when the start of the season was delayed by another deep playoff run by the football team - eight of the 13 varsity basketball team members also played football - and was soon followed by coach Shawn Peek resigning in January to accept the head football coaching job at Chattooga High School in Georgia. Webb, who was in his second season as an assistant, was promoted and the Pirates have won eight of their 11 games since.
The season's challenging script continues this weekend when the Pirates (15-8) host eighth-ranked Monterey (23-7) in a Region 3-A quarterfinal at 8 p.m. Saturday. After finishing the regular season as its district runner-up, Monterey was upset in the 6-A tournament and wound up finishing fourth.
That is one of 17 region quarterfinal games involving Chattanooga-area boys' teams Saturday, the same day Baylor's boys travel to Brentwood Academy for a Division II-AA state tournament quarterfinal.
There are also 17 girls' region quarterfinal games involving Chattanooga-area programs, with those set to be played Friday night.
"We've had some ups and downs this year, but we've really come together as a team over the last few weeks and we're playing our best right now," said Buchanan, who played fullback in football and averaged 10 points per game for the basketball Pirates before undergoing season-ending surgery on his hand Thursday.
"It's going to be tough having to sit and watch my team without being able to help, but we've spent almost all our time at practice lately working on defense because that's what's going to help us keep winning."
Aside from the toughness the football players brought to the court, the biggest asset for the Pirates this season has been their big guys, including 6-foot-4 junior Garrison Andry, 6-3 sophomore Reggie Hunter, who transferred in after Christmas break, and 6-2 junior Coby Cooper. Hunter earned district tournament MVP honors after averaging a double-double during the event, and even guard Ronto Tipton has averaged nine rebounds in the postseason.
"I know most people think we would be a running team because of all the football athletes, but we've been much better when we slow it down and play like an old-school team that works the ball inside and uses our size and strength down low," Webb said. "We already had some talented bigs, but Reggie has really solidified that area. He's been a beast for us, and now we can go about nine players deep and not lose much off the bench.
"It's been a crazy month, and these guys have already overcome a lot of adversity, so we've just got to keep punching."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.