Two claps from the corner, catch, release and - swish.
Toes to the free-throw line, a deep breath, a look at the rim and - “Take your time, baby. Come on. You can do it.”
These are the sights and sounds of Mary Hardin-Baylor junior Tilmon Gaddy, who has flourished since returning to Central Texas.
“My mom used to never come to my games, but now she’s at every last one of them,” said Gaddy, who is averaging 15 points and six rebounds per game in his first season with the Crusaders. “Everyone can probably hear her.”
Indeed, the shrieking encouragement of Gaddy’s mother does not fall on deaf ears - and might be heard even if it did.
A Killeen native and Harker Heights product with what coaches like to call “tremendous upside,” Gaddy learned the nuances of basketball during two years at NCAA Division II Midwest-ern State but didn’t transform his game until arriving at UMHB.
Now, he’s an opponent’s nightmare: a 6-6 hybrid player who is equally adept at getting to the rim, playing with his back to the basket, shooting from the perimeter and causing problems on the defensive end. He’s as flashy as an alley-oop dunk and as smooth as a fadeaway jumper.
“I’ve always played three positions, in the post, on the wing and at guard,” Gaddy said. “That’s no different this year. This season, though, has been the most fun.”
The enjoyment derives from his proximity to home and the success of 14th-ranked UMHB (22-3).
After starting 39 games at Midwestern, Gaddy transferred because “the interaction with (coach Jeff Ray) wasn’t jelling.” He chose UMHB because best friend and Concordia Texas standout Valentino Maxwell touted the virtues of Crusaders coach Ken DeWeese, plus there was the chance to play in front of family and friends.
Gaddy even expects his father, who lives in Atlanta, Ga., to be in attendance when UMHB plays its first-round game today at the American Southwest Con-ference Tournament at Mayborn Campus Center.
“He saw the tournament we had over Christmas and now this one,” Gaddy said of his father. “He’ll be here, plus the family that’s usually there, so it should be great.”
The friends and family who have made it to Gaddy’s games haven’t been disappointed, especially during the latter half of the season when he began to take over during some stretches.
“I had to learn how to do that,” Gaddy explained. “Coach DeWeese kept pounding it in my head, ‘Just take over when you want to.’
“They kept telling me after every game, ‘You could have done this last night.’ I would be thinking, ‘Man, I thought I had a great game.’”
According to DeWeese, it just a matter of Gaddy realizing his potential.
“When he got here he had no idea how good he could be,” said DeWeese, who has 571 career victories at the college level. “I always tell my guys that you have to have some imagination, and he was limiting himself.
“What I mean by that is he didn’t realize he could go get a rebound when he thought it was going someplace else. He didn’t realize he could put the ball on the floor and go past some people, or shoot the 3 or make a difference defensively.
“Now he’s put it all together and he’s really good at it. We depend on him to do it, and we expect him to do it.”
So far he’s delivered, and that’s helped make it an enjoyable run for all the Crusaders.
“This season really has been fun,” Gaddy said. “We’re being successful, and I have family in the crowd. I’ve been going out and playing loose. The ball’s coming to me, and I’m scoring points.”
And his mother will attest to that. No questions asked.
edrennan@temple-telegram.com
