LEXINGTON, Ky. (KT) – David Johnson has to be one the most self-effacing, ego-averse MVPs in the history of the Sweet Sixteen.
After the gifted 6-foot-5 senior had 22 points, 12 rebounds, 4
blocked shots and 2 assists to spark Trinity past Scott County 50-40 in
the finals of the 102nd Boys’ State Basketball Tournament in Rupp Arena on Sunday afternoon, he steadfastly refused the mantle of hero.
Reporters
tried to elicit some acknowledgment from Johnson on his fabulous play by
asking him questions about his clutch shooting and his gnarly defense,
but his answers always circled back to his teammates.
What about his buzzer-beating three-pointer from the right wing
to close the first half that tied the game (22-22) and prompted
Trinity’s other players to do a happy dance to the locker room?
“I know my teammates are going to feed off of it, but none of
that stuff fazes me,” Johnson said. “I like to keep a straight face and
stay poised whatever I’m doing.”
Did he ever worry back in late December when he hurt his knee that the Shamrocks’ season might go south?
“Never a doubt,” he said with conviction, noting that Trinity
barely lost to Scott County (56-53) in early January when he was
sidelined.
“I always had faith in my teammates. I knew they were going to come back even harder, with our without me.”
As Trinity Coach Mike Szabo stressed after beating Scott County
in the Sweet Sixteen finals for a second time (the first was in 2012),
“You’re not winning a state championship with one guy. You’re winning it
with a complete team. The chemistry with this group . . . I’ve never
seen anything like it. They love each other.”
To be sure, Johnson got Rocks-solid support from his teammates,
especially Stan Turnier (17 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals), Jamil
Hardaway (8 points, 6 rebounds) and Kamari Kenemore (4 assists, 2
steals).
But Trinity could not have won without Johnson, as Scott County Coach Billy Hicks attested.
“I think two teams really battled their tail off, but they had
David Johnson and we didn’t,” Hicks said. “Lorenzo (Williams) guarded
him as good as you can guard anybody, but he just hit tough shots.
“We wanted to work him hard for 32 minutes and hopefully wear him
down and cause him to miss some shots. But he hit some tough shots.
Gosh, I don’t see Kentucky or anybody hit shots like that in here.”
Scott County got burned by another standout in last year’s state
finals when CJ Fredrick had 32 points to lead Covington Catholic to
victory.
But Hicks said Fredrick had a better supporting cast than Johnson.
“We really tried to stop David Johnson, but he just played a great game. He’s one of the best I’ve seen.”
Johnson’s four-game totals in Rupp this week weren’t over-the-top
impressive: 61 points, 29 rebounds, 12 assists, 8 blocks. But then he
sat out a lot of the second half in Trinity’s first- and second-round
romps over Johnson Central and Ashland.
But he logged 31 minutes in the Rocks’ 42-40 escape against Campbell County, and he played all 32 minutes against Scott County.
Szabo described Johnson, who has signed with Louisville, as “the best player I’ve ever coached at Trinity.”
Johnson didn’t win Mr. Basketball honors, but Szabo believes
“he’s the best player in Kentucky. He’s so unselfish. He’ll do whatever
it takes to win the ball game. He can feel when he has to take over a
little bit and go get a bucket. He knows when he has to pass it; he has
tremendous vision. And he knows when he has to go get a huge rebound.
“He’s just a champion, a winner.”
And Trinity has another state title trophy to show for it.