Lake City chases school's first state championship

COLUMBIA — Willie Thomas finds himself in a unique position today.

The Lake City boys coach and athletic director has won more championships in basketball than his current school has in its existence, in any sport.

In fact, Thomas is the first coach in school history to guide a team to a state championship appearance.

But Thomas and his Panthers have an opportunity to change all that when they take on Daniel at 8:30 at Colonial Life Arena for the Class 3A state championship.

A win would forever bind the two, giving Thomas title No. 6 and the school its elusive first taste of championship glory.

“It’s a good first step,” Thomas said. “It’s a good first step for the kids, and hopefully it leads to better things for them after high school.

“It’s also an important step for the athletic programs. You always hope the success in one program can transfer to others and really bring a lot of pride to the school and the community.”

Thomas won three titles with Holly Hill and another with Bowman. Though none of his players have championship game experience, he doesn’t anticipate he’ll have too much advice to give before today’s game.

“There’s really not a whole lot more I can teach them,” Thomas said “Most of these kids have been with me for four years now, and they’ve really bought in to what we’re teaching.”

Not that Thomas’ experiences haven’t already been helpful.

“He’s really stressed preparation,” senior standout Corey Baker said. “Preparation before the season, preparation before games. It’s easier to go along with that stuff when you know he’s been there and done that before.”

Baker has been the “catalyst” for the Panthers all season, Thomas said. He’s averaged 16 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks per game to lead Lake City.

“It all kind of runs through him,” Thomas said. “He’s probably the one guy we can’t afford to lose. He does so many things for us on the court, so many intangibles, and just provides great leadership.”

Dashawn Butler is adding 11 points a game and Martin Cooper, Bryce Thomas and a handful of others are all contributing seven points or more as well.

“We’re having a pretty good year all around shooting the ball,” Cooper said. “A lot of that comes with practice and a lot of comes with guys who are confident because they’ve made big shots all season.”

After cruising through the first part of their season, including earning the Carolina Classic title, the Panthers hit a rough stretch during Region 7-3A play, despite going 9-1.

“We had kind of an up-and-down season,” Baker said. “I think we got a little too satisfied with ourselves and didn’t play as well.

“It was tough then, but I think it helped us in the end.”

The Panthers used a number of come-from-behind wins late in games down the stretch to secure a top playoff seed and eventual berth in the state championship.

“Having those kinds of games scares you as a coach, but it’s instilled a lot of confidence in this team late in games,” Thomas said. “No situation is too big for them.”

The Panthers face another balanced scoring team in Daniel, led by Antonio Cannon (13.4 ppg), Justin Dotson (13.3 ppg) and Clemson football signee Deandre Hopkins (11.5).

“(Daniel) hasn’t been beaten by a team from this state, so they’re obviously very good,” Thomas said. “The Hopkins kid is a hard guard, and a lot will depend on if we can keep him out of the lane.

“It’s going to be a big challenge, no doubt. But we’ve always been of the mindset that we have to focus more on ourselves and what we’re doing instead of the other team.”