Sun-Democrat, March 14, 1974

 

Toon’s Team In

First Showing In State Tourney

 

Atkin’s Alley by Jerry Atkins

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Louisville, Ky.--It’s the “Greatest Show On Earth”...this Kentucky State High School basketball tournament.  Everybody who’s ever been here will agree, there’s no question about that.

 

The years have rolled by for Murray High School’s head basketball coach Bob Toon.  He’s been here, of course, just as every coach in the commonwealth has….but, now he’s experiencing an entirely new phase of the “Sweet Sixteen.”  Toon, you see, has his first team playing in this annual event, and the feeling is simply something too unreal to describe.

 

“It’s something I’ve dreamed about ever since I’ve been coaching,” the enthusiastic Toon said of making the State Tournament.  “I can’t say enough for this group of kids...they gave me the opportunity.”

 

Toon’s Tigers, winner of the First Region Tournament for the first time in the school’s history, will enter the 57th edition of the Kentucky State Tournament with a shiny 26-2 record, which includes a sparkling 17-game victory skein.  To say the Murray quint is “streaking” would match the times, but a better word at this point would be “flashing.”

  Blessed with good ball-handlers who love to play the game with flashy contributions, many observers this year have termed the Tigers as being “show boats” on the hardwood.  Toon doesn’t deny this. 

 

“People have called them hotdogs and show boats all season,” he admitted.  “But, they’ve always responded to coaching on the floor….they’ve done everything I’ve ever asked of them.”

 

Continuing, the Tiger coach delivered his feelings about playing the game.  “I feel that when a player’s got talent, it's hard to hide.  And, I also feel that emotions are part of the game...if you don’t get emotional, you aren’t ready.  These kids are very emotional...they get high for the game.”

 

Part of that emotional state belongs to the kids themselves, but an even larger part of it stems from Toon.  Rarely will you ever see a more emotional coach.  Last Saturday night, for example, when the Tigers trimmed Paducah Tilghman 67-65 for the First Region championship, Toon’s Tigers were “higher than a kite” for the game.  While each player went through a season-long ritual of racing down a row of Murray footballers for hand-slapping encouragement, Toon became one of the top “cheerleaders” on the floor.

 

The players were high….and so was Toon!

 

Success at Murray High isn’t anything completely new, even though a trip to the State Tournament is.  Toon, completing his 10th season at the Tiger helm, has enjoyed winning seasons almost all the way.  Going into Thursday night’s tournament-opening showdown against Warren EAst, Toon-coached teams have posted a 141-90 showing...including the current 26-2 record.

 

The Bob Toon story started back in the early ‘50s when the gritty little guy starred in basketball, football and track at Fulton High School.  He graduated from high school in 1954 and later became a four-year letterman as a halfback for Murray State University’s football team.

 

Toon’s coaching career began in Findley, Ill, a small town in the center of the state with something like 130 students in high school.  He served as an assistant his first year there, but took over as head coach the next two.  After posting a 25-17 two-year record in Illinois, the personable Toon returned to Murray to become head basketball coach and an assistant to the now retired Preston “Ty” Holland in football.

 

That was 10 years ago, and Murray finally has made it to the big one in Louisville!  Toon enters the State Tournament with a personal 12-year record of 166-107, making him a veteran sidecourt performer outside the “Sweet Sixteen.”

 

Before this year, Murray’s best basketball showing was a position in the finals of the 1970 Regional, the year Tilghman claimed a 59-52 decision to deny that first State Tournament appearance.  The Tigers finished with a 20-5 worksheet that year, their best ever until this year’s team took the floor.  The 1971 Tigers made it to the Regional semifinals, losing to eventual champion Carlisle County.

 

Last year, the Tigers failed to win the Fourth District title for the first time after three consecutive triumphs.  They finished with a 12-10 showing, which isn’t something you shout about.  But, it could well be a driving factor in this year’s outstanding worksheet.  Murray’s senior-inspired team came to win it all this year, and so far, they’ve made a lot of people believe.

 

Toon, of course, has been a driving factor in that turn-around.  Married to the former Shirley Cathey of Murray--the two are parents of 13-year-old Shara, an 8th -grade cheerleader at Murray Middle School--Toon is perhaps the most excited person around.

 

But, from the coaching angle, Toon enjoys some outstanding and enthusiastic help from varsity assistant Jerry Shelton and freshman mentor Clayton Hargrove.  Shelton, in fact, has been a Murray High assistant for eight years and every Tiger starter has passed through his hands.

 

So, finally, Toon and his staff have made it to the big one!  And, if enthusiasm makes a difference, bigger and better things are yet to come!