On Nov. 7, 2023, OHS boys’ basketball head coach, Drew Tyler, earned his 600th coaching win. This is Tyler’s 27th season coaching at Oxford.
“600th win, I guess it kind of validates what we’re doing, but more than my wins it’s the players and kids wins,” Tyler said. “I do think we do things the right way as far as administration, players, coaches, assistant coaches and support staff. I mean Oxford’s been good. It’s where I went to school and built up loyalty for the school.”
During the preseason the Chargers grew closer together off of the court. Senior Kobe Jones is entering his fourth and final season on the OHS basketball team and explains how he has grown a relationship with his teammates over the years.
“I think our team dynamic is great. I think we hangout together, on the court, off the court and we all try to play together to be the best team we could possibly be,” Jones said.
Tyler emphasizes the importance of being one team and enjoys seeing the bonds form between the players on his team.
“People know Oxford, it’s clique-ish and within a school setting, there’s clique-ish, there’s different groups within different sports teams,” Tyler said. “We seem to all be one unit and one clique and that’s pretty neat and I think that trickles down from our seniors and they have done a great job taking underclassmen, especially ninth graders, under their wing. Coach Reed and I really like the way they hang out together off of the court and I think that means a lot in how you teach and coach relationships within your players.”
Last year the Chargers ended their season 15-15. They ended the year fourth in their district while also not making a playoff run. Tyler explains how the team is improving and building from last season.
“Of course they’re a year older, you want your team a year older, and I think they’re a year better,” Tyler said. “I’m sure you can teach toughness, but I do think they have entered this season as just a tougher person, a tougher basketball player and at the same time, they’ve obviously made the commitment to approach it in a business-like way. I feel like last year we finished the season 15-15 with a lot of unfinished business so I really like the way their demeanor is in the preseason.”
The Chargers have a new starting lineup this season and are also adding many new components to the court. Senior DJ Davis believes the team has the perfect combination of players to succeed this season.
“I feel like we have a lot of different pieces that can do a lot of different things,” Davis said. “We pretty much have a new starting lineup: Jay Burt can handle the ball, Kobe can shoot, Adam can play defense, and Julian can shoot the cover off the ball.”
The Chargers started district play Nov. 30 against the Desoto Central Jaguars.
“We knew it was an important game that we needed to win so we came out with more energy and more fight and overall better defense,” Jones said.
The Chargers kept a close score and won the game 52-46.
“It was a very intense game, a lot of back and forth turnovers,” Davis said. “We held on close at the end, which gave us momentum for our DC trip.”
The Chargers made a trip to Washington D.C. to play Bishop Ireton and St. John’s College School. Sophomore Adam Tyson has been an impactful player since his first year.
“We came out a little bit harder and they took the lead, but other than that we just kept playing hard,” Tyson said.
Although the Chargers did not have much success, they are using it as a building oppurnitiy to get better throughout the rest of the season.
“I think you can learn from everything, as a team I think we can all come together, and practice to fix what we did wrong, so we can rebound better,” Jones said.
The Chargers have high expectations for this season with hopes to make a playoff run. “The goal for this season is to get better and build chemistry,” Jones said. “We want to make a big run in the playoffs and win a state championship.”
The Chargers have a set goal of competing for a state championship.
“I would like to get to the Jackson coliseum,” Tyler said. “That doesn’t mean championship, but it means when you get to the Jackson Coliseum anything can happen. I know that as a player, I know that as a coach, and you have to mesh at the right times. So we want this group to compete for a gold ball in the coliseum.”
