I like moxy

Despite losing to Monticello Thursday night in the championship game of the Southeast Junior District Tournament, El Dorado girls basketball coach Henry Harrell was in a good mood. The Lady Wildcats showed some grit and some toughness, battling back in the fourth quarter against a team that had mercy ruled them earlier.
Monticello has a good 9th grade team, finishing 17-1 with the lone loss to Star City. El Dorado's 9th grade team is good but never seems to beat good opponents.
As usual with every Lady Wildcats' team, the missing ingredient seems to be intangibles like hunger, competitiveness and moxy.
I guess that's why Harrell was smiling as he talked about the loss on Thursday. The Lady Wildcats aren't as good as Monticello. Not as big. Not as talented. Not as deep.
None of that seemed to matter in the fourth quarter as El Dorado fought, scratched and clawed and had two shots to tie the game or take the lead in the final minute.
After the game, Harrell acknowledged, that was indeed the very best his team could've played.
Charlotte Bradley looks like a future superstar, scoring 18 points, including some of the highlight film variety. But, Bradley did not score in the final quarter, didn't take a shot in the final three minutes.
Same ol' Lady Wildcats, you say?
I don't know. She passed the ball way too much down the stretch for my liking but she was tired and she's very young.
I must admit, I was disappointed when El Dorado had to have two technical free throws down the stretch and Bradley did not step to the line to shoot 'em. Harrell's smile turned into a grin after the game when he explained why Meredith Rice was the shooter.
"She said, 'Let me shoot 'em. I'll make 'em.'"
Rice, who had a horrible night at the line in the semifinals, drained both free throws to cut the lead to two in the final minute. It was Rice who took both shot attempts to tie the game.
The kid wanted the ball. She was the only player on the floor not looking to pass the ball to somebody else down the stretch.
Dadgum, I like that. Idiots would call her selfish. I'd call her confident, competitive. I'd say she has moxy.
Some athletes wait for somebody else to make a play. That's fine but when you have an entire team that's looking to pass, you can't win. Somebody has to want the ball. Somebody has to raise her hand in the huddle with the game on the line and say, "Coach, let me shoot it. I'll make it."
Ideally, you'd like that person to be your best player. But, there's no rule that says it has to be.
When it's time to win a game, I'm giving the ball to the player who wants it.
I think Coach Harrell was smiling last night because his girls played their butts off. His best player was a superstar for three quarters, almost singlehandedly keeping her team in the game. And, when the game was on the line, he didn't have to beg somebody to step up.
A little moxy in a kid makes me smile, too.