Story and Photos By Kevin Eckleberry
BeeTV Sports Director
There was only one way this story was going to end.
The Valley Rams have been on a mission since day one to not only capture a state championship but to accomplish that feat in truly historic fashion by winning every game they played.
On Saturday at Legacy Arena in Birmingham, with seemingly the entire community there offering its enthusiastic support, Valley completed the memorable journey with a 54-50 victory over Charles Henderson.
It was the first state title in the history of the program, and the Rams (33-0) became just the 11th undefeated state champion in state history according to the AHSAA.
“It’s very hard,” Valley head coach Marshon Harper said of his team’s unbeaten journey. “Every game you’ve got a target on your back. Every single game, everyone wants to be the one to say they beat you. We had some close games, too, but it’s a testament to the players. And I want to give a hats off to the coaching staff also. They have done an unbelievable job. The players, they bought in. They wanted to be champions. Let’s do something special that someone has never done before in the history of Valley High School. Let’s do it, and they bought in from June 1st. They bought in, and I’m proud of them.”
After four one-sided victories in the state tournament to reach the title game, Valley was pushed to the limit by Charles Henderson.
It wasn’t until Ian Crim-Davis made a free throw with four seconds left to push the lead to four that the outcome was finally secured.
After Charles Henderson missed a desperation shot at the buzzer, the celebration was on as the Valley players and coaches realized the magnitude of what they’d accomplished.
“We’re going to be talking about this forever,” said junior post player Brandon Thomas, who had six points and 12 rebounds. “It doesn’t even seem real. Coach Harper has been telling us, don’t go 32-1, go 33-0.”
Senior point guard Jamarious Martin knew it was going to be his last game as a high-school player, and possibly the last basketball game ever for Valley High, so he was going to leave everything on the court.
“I’m a senior, so going out your last game, you have to put it all on the floor,” Martin said. “You know the school might not come back. You know you made history. You’re the one that did it, so it means a lot.”
Junior Cam’ron Dooley, who scored all 19 of his points in the second half and was the MVP of the Final Four, said “we’ve been talking about this since June. It’s a big accomplishment for the team.”
For Marshon Harper, the championship meant everything.
Harper is a graduate of Valley High, and he’s been a coach at the school for more than 20 years, and to help bring a championship to a school and community that means so much to him was incredibly impactful.
“A lot of stuff lifted off my shoulders,” said Harper, whose son Jameson Harper is a junior guard for the Rams. “I’ve been trying to do this for 24 years. I have had a lot of opportunities to go to other places, but I wanted to do it in my hometown. I could have done it at a lot of places, but I wanted to stay. I can remember these kids being fourth graders with my son saying, dad, we’re going to win a state title. We’re going to win a state title. And they proved it.”
Brandon Thomas was one of those fourth-graders, and he recalls letting his future coach know what the future could hold.
“We were in the fourth grade, we told him we’re going to win the championship when we get there,” Thomas said.
Jamarious Martin remembers those days as a youth basketball player, and he had a feeling some special days could be ahead for that group.
“I was a fifth-grader at the time. I saw them play, and they didn’t lose a lot in AAU,” Martin said. “I knew that if I got a chance to play with them, it’d be good. We already knew each other. We grew up with each other. Playing basketball against other people made it easy. We love playing with each other.”
Standing in Valley’s way on Saturday was a strong Charles Henderson team that had championship aspirations of its own.
Charles Henderson had a 20-18 lead at the half, and it was ahead 29-24 midway through the third quarter.
That’s when Cam’Ron Dooley, who only played a few minutes in the first half after getting two early fouls, took over.
During an 18-2 run that spanned the remainder of the third quarter and part of the fourth quarter, Dooley scored 12 points as Valley took a 42-31 lead.
Charles Henderson wasn’t done, though.
The Trojans went on an 8-0 run to get within three with 1:48 to play, and they got as close as three points once again in the closing moments before Ian Crim-Davis clinched it with his free throw with four seconds left.
It wasn’t a great shooting day for the Rams, who were 17-of-52 from the field and only 3-of-18 on 3-point attempts.
The Rams were 17-of-20 on free-throw attempts, though, and they outrebounded the Trojans 40-29.
The Rams also had Cam’Ron Dooley on their side, and that helped.
Dooley only played five minutes in the first half and didn’t score, but he made up for lost time in the second half with 19 points, knocking down five shots from the field while going 8-of-9 from the free-throw line. Dooley also had nine rebounds and four steals.
“It was frustrating,” Dooley said of his first-half struggles. “I started out slow, and we went to halftime, coach Harper gave me a little speech and told me I’m going to have 20 points in the second half.”
Ian Crim-Davis added 13 points for Valley, and he had nine points in the first half to help keep his team in the game.
Jamarious Martin contributed 10 points and did a terrific job running the offense from the point guard position, and Brandon Thomas added six points, and he hit a shot at the third-quarter buzzer to put Valley on top 34-29.
Senior Denali Dooley had two points and four rebounds, junior guard Jay Harper added two points with four rebounds and two assists, and senior Quen Story scored two points.
It was a team effort, with everyone who stepped on the court contributing, and the end result was another win for a team that will go down as one of the finest in the history of the state.
“It means the world to me,” Marshon Harper said. “I’ve been holding back tears. I prayed about it. I let my tears go before the game. Now we’re in the history books. We’re state champions. I am super-proud.”
