Wheatley looking to end HISD’s drought
Girls teams have not won a state crown since Yates in 1983
Out of the mountain of texts and calls Dedreck Carr received this week, one stood out.
It was former Wheatley boys basketball coach Jackie Carr sending congratulatory remarks to the current girls basketball head coach for helping the Lady Wildcats to a state tournament.
“I call him the Great Jackie Carr,” Dedreck said.
The two are not related, but past and present connected on that call.
Wheatley’s athletics profile is accentuated by Jackie’s 1960s and 1970s teams that dominated the Prairie View Interscholastic League and later the University Interscholastic League.
Interestingly enough, Jackie might have to double-dip in the Alamodome this week. He’s hoping to make Wheatley’s Class 4A girls state semifinal against Argyle on Friday and has to be in San Antonio again with the 1968 Wheatley boys state title team being honored.
The same kind of success that immortalized Jackie’s teams is at stake for Dedreck’s girls. Yates’ 1983 state title is the only Houston ISD crown in girls basketball. Madison went to state in 1995, and modern history has seen programs like Westside and Bellaire become prominent, but the biggest trophy has eluded the state’s largest district.
Potential lift for inner city
There is a chance here for Wheatley to push the sport forward in inner-city Houston when girls basketball thrives in the city’s suburbs.
And in a cruel twist of fate, this year’s Class 6A and Class 5A state tournament brackets are void of state giants Duncanville and Canyon. Wheatley doesn’t have that luxury against four-time defending state champion Argyle.
Doubt surrounds the Fifth Ward, too. Houston ISD has been trying to stave off state takeover for failure to improve chronically underperforming schools, one of which is Wheatley. Those schools have been threatened with closure, among other sanctions.
It’s an unusual amount of happenstances that Dedreck uses as a calling card, printing: “Wheatley vs. Everybody” shirts for his girls.
“Those things are why we really want to represent and do well for our community,” said Dedreck, who also cited the school’s 90th anniversary this year as motivation.
Meanwhile, Patrick Augbon isn’t making a frustrated face this week.
The Yates girls basketball coach is in his second stint at his alma mater and remembers the 1983 title team well.
He split the regular-season series with the rival Wildcats before falling in Saturday’s regional title game and might see them win it all.
Augbon realizes Wheatley’s opportunity is bigger than a district rivalry. Houston ISD’s reputation is on the line here.
The district is often skimmed over in girls basketball. Augbon said AAU culture isn’t permeated throughout inner-city girls basketball as much as other areas because it’s unaffordable for a lot of those families. A player talented enough may be able to get by on that alone, but others have to pay. As a result, players in the district are seen as a step behind others and Augbon said coaching often gets blamed.
Team with no opponents
And it’s an uphill climb on campus. Facilities haven’t been held in high regard in the past. Some coaches don’t have athletic periods and some don’t have freshman teams — things that are automatic in other places.
“In my district, I was the only school with a freshman team so my freshmen couldn’t play anybody,” Augbon said. “It’s not so much that they’re not coached. It’s a lot of other things that play into that.”
Dedreck had another take, and again, uses the bias as a calling card.
“It’s a lot different,” Dedreck said. “A lot of times in the suburbs, those coaches don’t have to deal with the everyday life that we have to. We have to worry about our kids eating at home. Do they have a place to stay? Are the lights on at their home? It’s a whole different animal.”
On the court, Augbon said Houston ISD teams can lack depth. Talent is there, no doubt, but it becomes harder to match other teams with deeper rosters in the postseason.
Guarded optimism
This Wheatley team may be different.
The Lady Wildcats have had talent before, but this mix of transfers Ariana Taylor and Laila Blair and sophomore standout freshman Telisha Brown has worked wonders. Taylor’s presence in the paint is key, and Blair and Brown bring it together in the backcourt.
It’s the guards that has Augbon believing Wheatley can indeed overcome.
“I really do think Wheatley can because they have guard play,” Augbon said. “And in girls basketball if you have guard play, you can win.”