Cordova point guard KJ Tenner saw the play the whole way. As Bartlett guard Christian Alston dribbled to his right, Tenner jumped his path, swiped in with his right hand, picking Alston’s pocket clean and got into transition on a fast break.
As quickly as he stole the ball, he took just two dribbles to go from half court to the left block. He went up for a layup on the right side of the basket, drawing contact and getting the and-1.
It happened amid a 10-2 run to end the third quarter in Cordova’s 49-43 win over Bartlett.
To say it was the loudest moment of the night might not be accurate, but it was up there, and on a night that had a nostalgic Memphis high school basketball rivalry feel to it.
The win was the exact statement Cordova wanted to make, taking down the Memphis area’s No. 1 boys basketball team Tuesday night.
“We felt like, coming into this game, we were the No. 1 team in the state,” Tenner said. “We wanted to beat (Bartlett) the way we did.”
With the success of this year’s Wolves (21-1), it’s easy to compare them to the 2016 team, the only Cordova team to play for a state championship.
But Cordova coach Terrance Scales doesn’t care for comparisons.
“I believe the old school saying, ‘Comparison’s the thief of joy,’ ” Scales said.
But it doesn’t take away from this team being able to achieve similar success as that team, or even better.
“This team definitely has what it takes to make a run to the state tournament and possibly bring home a gold ball,” Scales said. “We definitely have the look of a state championship-caliber team.”
And Tenner and Julius Thedford, who scored 20 points and 11 points, respectively, have championship aspirations.
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They heard the doubt outsiders had of the Wolves entering Tuesday’s marquee matchup, the final regular-season game between the teams.
They saw the rankings, listing Bartlett (21-3) above them.
Tuesday’s win is exactly what they felt they needed to show they are ready to make a run to the state tournament.
“Our confidence is there,” Thedford said. “Our groove is back.”
Scales gets asked all of the time about how this team compares to the only Cordova team to play for a state championship.
Doing that takes the joy out of appreciating his team’s success. So he won’t compare them. He’ll leave that to everybody else.
“When you get to comparing, you can’t enjoy (it),” he said. “I enjoyed that run with the 2015-16 team and I’m enjoying coaching these guys, too.”
Reach Wynston Wilcox at [email protected] and on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, @wynstonw__.