This is the first of a three-part series on the Pottawatomie County 1,000-Point Club.
Teamwork is essential to winning in basketball, but the team can also bring out the best in its star players. This is especially true for six athletes from high schools in Pottawatomie County who reached the “1,000-Point Club” milestone this season.
Shawnee seniors Tanner Morris and Jaylon Orange; Tecumseh junior Kenzli Warden; Bethel junior Parker Stevenson; Bethel senior John Gordon; and Dale sophomore Dayton Forsythe all joined the “club,” in which career points are counted beginning their freshman year.
According to Shawnee Boys Head Basketball Coach Eric Litherland, several factors have to fall into place for an athlete to reach 1,000 points.
“You have to be able to log in some (considerable) play time,” said Litherland. “Both of these guys (Morris and Orange) started to get varsity minutes during their ninth-grade seasons.”
“You need to catch a few breaks, such as being injury free. They have both missed very few games due to an injury.”
“It helps to be able to make runs in the playoffs. With two trips to the state tournament in three years, they were able to play in a couple of extra games.”
“Last, but not least, you have to be skilled,” he added. “Both guys have put time into their craft. Everyone wants to score, but few can do it with the consistency these guys do it with.”
For Shawnee, this is the first time in school history that teammates have reached this goal in one season.
“We have had several 1,000-point scorers but never in the same season or teammates, for that matter,” said Litherland.
Litherland attributes the success of Orange and Morris to their hard work and talent.
“They have shown, by example on and off the floor, what can happen when hard work matches the skill set,” he said. “They are both talented players, and they have both worked hard to get to where they are.”
This is Litherland’s first season to coach at his hometown of Shawnee, and having Orange and Morris on the team has made the situation better.
“It has made the transition of being the third coach in three years that much easier,” he said. “They are leaders who listen and go out (and) compete.”
“It may be a minute before I get two seniors like this, with this kind of experience, if I ever get it again, period.”
Tanner Morris
Morris grew up in a basketball family. He said everyone in his family played basketball, and his brother, Chase, was “one of the best players to go through Shawnee.”
“I grew up playing against him at the gym and in the driveway and always looked up to him,” said Morris.
Morris began playing basketball in first grade and joined his first school team in fourth grade.
In addition to his brother, Morris attributes his success to his parents.
“My parents always pushed me to be the best I can be and made me get up and go to the gym on the days I didn’t feel like it,” he said.
In recent years, Morris grew to love going to the gym.
“I love being in the gym and working on whatever I need to get better,” he said. “I stayed at the gym after every practice until (the) coach kicked me out, and then I would go find the next gym that was open.”
Litherland said the work has paid off in improvements to the shooting guard’s game.
“Tanner has done a great job of adding rebounding and driving to the rim to his game,” he said. “Tanner, over the years, would be the guy on the outside ready to shoot off the pass. He has had several games where he has registered six-plus rebounds in the game.”
Morris climbed to 1,000 points during their game against Choctaw on Jan. 20, and he said it means a lot to him.
“Since I’ve played basketball for as long as I have, it just shows me that all of the hours I put in behind the scenes paid off,” he said.
Then, on Jan. 28 in the game against Ada, Morris went one step further and broke Shawnee’s all-time scoring record of 1,105 points.
On Feb. 18, the ball from the Ada game was presented to Morris by the man who set the former record from 1973-75, David Smith. The ceremony was held on Senior Night before the boys’ home game and also included the presentation of game balls from the 1000-point games of Morris and Orange. At that time, Morris had made 1,150 points, but his high school career total is now at 1,183 points, according to Chris Cox with KGFF radio.
Morris said being presented the game ball by Smith was “awesome.”
“It’s one of those things where it’s just hard to believe, but it’s hands-down one of the best moments of my life, and I hope some time down the road, I’m able to present the next person who breaks the record with their ball,” he said.
Teamwork is the third thing Morris attributes his success to.
“Teamwork is one of the things in basketball that doesn’t get enough credit,” he said. “I never would have been able to get this achievement if it weren’t for the guys I have played with over the course of my career.”
“I’ve played with some of the best players to come through Shawnee for a long time, and they made big plays and had no problem giving me the ball when I got hot.”
Jaylon Orange
Like Morris, Orange began playing basketball young. He was about 5-years-old and played at the YMCA.
“Yes, basketball was my first love!” he said. “I love everything about it: the sound the ball makes when you’re dribbling, or the sound (it) makes when you make a basket. The scheming & trying to out-smart the other team.”
In fifth grade, Orange started playing for Pleasant Grove Public School, where he moved to play basketball.
Also, like Morris, he credits his success to his parents “for spending the money for trainers and putting me in AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) and allowing me to travel and see the best players in the world, and it gave me a chance to be ranked in the nation for a couple of years.”
Orange added that he played for Ferguson Elite in the Under Armour Circuit, and he traveled to Las Vegas, Texas, Kansas, Georgia, California, and Missouri. At that time, he was ranked 31st in the nation.
Throughout high school, Orange practiced with the team for two hours every day.
“Jaylon has developed into a really good floor general,” said Litherland. “(He) controls the game, manages the game, and is like an assistant coach on the floor.”
The 5’ 10” point guard said he has learned from his teammates, as well.
“My teammates taught me a lot over my four years because I played a lot as a freshman, and my teammates taught me a lot when I (was) growing from a freshman to where I am now!” he said.
Orange joined the 1000-Point Club on Feb. 11 during their game against Guthrie. His high school career points are now at 1,038, and he is the fifth all-time scorer in SHS history, according to Cox.
About joining the “club,” Orange said, “It means a lot to me, because everybody wants to score 1,000 points in high school, and I did it in 6A and 5A - kind of makes me feel proud of myself.”
Orange plans to play football in college, but he said, “if my college wants me to hoop, I might do it.”
