Photo by Erin Nelson.
Mountain Brook’s Julius Clark (5) shoots a layup in the first half of the Class 6A boys Northeast Regional Final against Huffman at Jacksonville State University’s Pete Mathews Coliseum on Feb. 21.
The Mountain Brook High School boys basketball team is no stranger to lifting the state championship trophy.
The Spartans have emerged atop the proverbial mountain six times in the last decade, claiming more blue maps than a single person can carry.
But they never start the year aiming for that goal. It’s all about the next drill, the next lift, the next practice and the next game. It’s safe to say that process has worked pretty well for the Spartans over the years.
So, when faced with the disappointment of how last season ended — an overtime loss in the Class 6A Northeast Regional final against Huffman — the Spartans don’t go back to the drawing board or talk about how much that result drives and inspires them over the offseason. The Spartans simply get back to work.
“If you play in enough big games over the years, the ball doesn’t always bounce the way you want it to bounce. I don’t think anything ended up last year because of how we trained or worked or prepared,” Mountain Brook head coach Tyler Davis said at a preseason Birmingham Media Day event.
Julius Clark, a senior wing for the Spartans who is now fully healthy after rebounding from a knee injury in the 2021 state championship game, said each Mountain Brook team’s identity is forged in the summer during training and conditioning.
Mountain Brook’s relentless style of play makes conditioning imperative, as it is one of the Spartans’ primary advantages each season.
It all starts there and progresses throughout the year, one step at a time.
“We never talk about winning a state championship. We don’t talk about the end goal. We don’t talk about winning tournaments. We talk about winning that segment, winning that practice, getting 1% better every day,” junior point guard Ty Davis said.
That mentality and commitment to the process is evident as the Spartans adjust to life without Kyle Layton, a guard who led the Spartans in scoring last season. Layton injured his knee over the summer, and the Spartans are unsure whether he will be able to return at some point this season.
“It’s a big hit for us to not have Kyle, but at the same time, these guys are all taught to be unselfish, to be fearless and play with intensity at all times, so it has to be something that we don’t necessarily have to worry about one guy,” Tyler Davis said. “Everybody has to continue to do their job, and everything else will take care of itself.”
Andrew Kohler is entering his third year on the varsity team and will be a key player in the Mountain Brook backcourt, along with Ty Davis. Lawson Gardner is a strong player on both sides of the ball, while Josh Long and Henry Hufham will do most of the work in the paint for the Spartans.
John Carwie, John Webb and Carson Romero will be key players off the bench for the Spartans, while football players John Colvin, Jackson Beatty, Clark Sanderson and Cole Gamble will be added to the mix after their season on the gridiron.
Tucker Crawford, Mac Couvillion and Jack Bakken are also expected to contribute for the Spartans this year.
Mountain Brook’s area will have a different look this winter, as the Spartans go up against the likes of Pell City, Woodlawn and Shades Valley. The Spartans will play in a couple prestigious tournaments and host one of their own. They also will play a home-and-home series against longtime rival Vestavia Hills.
“I feel very confident in the group we have this year,” Clark said. “We’re gritty, we get loose balls and take charges. I’m really confident.”
