Levelland and Hockley County News-Press (Levelland, Tex.), Vol. 10, No. 94, Ed. 1 Wednesday, March 1, 1989 Page: 19 of 37
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LEVELLAND * HOCKLEY COUNTY NEWS-PRESS, Wednesday, March 1, 1988-SB
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Jeree Blakemore "deceptive force"
by MITCH WORD
Sports Writer
At first glance, Loboelte senior
Jeree Blakemore really doesn’t
look the role of a basketball player.
A slim figure, combined with an
unemotional face and a quiet
manner, all add up to make the 5-9
Blakemore a deceptive force on the
basketball court.
And that suits her just fine,
thank you.
"I don’t really care if they don’t
key on me. Defenses usually have
enough trouble containing Carol
(Bailey) and Rachel (Hesse) and
Twylana (Harrison), so they don’t
key on me as much. But I feel that I
can contribute to this team, and that
makes me happy,"Blakemore said
during a Sunday afternoon inter-
view from her home.
Blakemore plays a wing/guard
spot for the Loboettes, currently
32-1 on the year and heading into
the 4A State Tournament for the
fourth consecutive year. But before
she could gain playing time for the
Loboettes of 1988-89, she lived out
the dream of becoming like her
idol.
"When I started to play basket-
ball in seventh grade, I wanted to
be like my cousin, Darla Bryant.
She was on the 1983 team, and she
was a real good player. I remember
thinking to myself,’I want to be just
like her.’"she said.
Blakemore has played basket-
ball of one kind or another since
the third grade, thanks to the Little
Dribbler program, and the senior,
who averaged 8.3 points per game
for the squad this year, refuses to
call herself a "good player."
"I really don’t think I’m a good
player. Carol and Rachel both have
built-in talent, and I don’t have any
of that. I do think I’m a smart
player, and I’ve worked my tail off
trying to be a better player, but I
don’t have much natural talent,"
she said.
Blakemore stated that her
success comes from the oldest
practice in the book-simple hard
work.
"I spent a lot of lime in the gym,
especially after my sophomore
year. I played on the junior varsity
my sophomore year, and I told
myself that I was going to make the
varsity my junior year. So I worked
on my shot to make it better," she
said.
Her strategy must have worked
rather well, as the senior connected
on 113 of 232 shots, including a
pair of three pointers, for a 50
percent clip. Although she feels
that her natural talent is lacking,
she said that she doesn’t mind the
pressure of a big game.
"I’m not worried about having
the ball in my hands during a close
ballgame. I feel that I can do the
job, whether it’s a shot from the
outside or from the free throw
line,” she said.
"Jeree’s role had to change this
year from last year. When she was
a junior we really didn’t need that
many points out of her. This year
we would like to have her scoring
10 or 12 points per game, but she is
so team-orifented that sometimes
she will give up a good shot. I have
to gel on to her sometimes to get
her to shoot the ball," Weese said. '
In looking back over her career,
Blakemore listed as her most
important single contribution to the
team as a stolen ball in last year’s
final district contest against the
Canyon Lady Eagles.
"All I kept thinking was ’get
back on defense. Gel deeper.’ Then
(Canyon player) Missy Kraai tried
to get by me, and I just reached out
and picked up the ball,” she said.
Blakemore stole the ball, then
threw it to a wide-open Josie
Longoria, who raced toward the
basket for an easy layup and a 46-
44 overtime victory in the last-ever
district meeting between the two
schools.
"That’s probably the best thing
I’ve done in my whole life. I was
actually able to help win the game
right there at the end. It was really
great," she said.
"I don’t really get bothered by
pressure. It makes it easier know-
ing that Coach Weese believes in
me, and if he believes in me then I
have to believe in myself. I might
gel nervous trying a shot or going
to the free throw line in a pressure
situation, but I’ll give it my best
shot," she said.
In making her second consecu-
tive trip to the state tourney as a
player, Blakemore stated that she
feels fortunate to be a part of the
program.
"Being a Loboette is a special
thing. That has helped me on and
off the court. It gives me a lot of
pride and a lot of confidence. It’s
also made me a very competitive
person, whether it’s in class or on
the court or whatever. I feel sorry
for some people because they won’t
gel to experience the things I’ve
experienced being on this team,
like going to state," Blakemore
said.
Blakemore staled that she feels
she has made improvements in her
shooting and dribbling over the
course of the last couple of years,
but added that defense is her
favorite pau of the game.
"I don’t know why, I just like
defense. I like the job of having to
slop the other team from scoring. I
know that we can score points, I
just think it’s more fun to keep
them from scoring," she said.
The future for the senior is
uncertain at the present, but she
staled that her immediate future
does not include further basketball
competition.
"I have this little place in my
heart that says I would miss basket-
ball if I didn’t play, but I would be
so competitive that I wouldn’t ever
want to sit on the bench, so I’m
unsure about that right now," she
said.
PUBLIC HARASSMENT-Lcvclland Loboette members Twylana Harrison (left) and Rachel Hesse (right)
defend against Pampa early in the season. The Loboettes held their opponents to an average of 32.3 points per
game in the regular season en route to a 16-0 district mark. (Staff Photo)
*
Congratulations
Loboettes
We're
Behind
You
All The
Way
Stafford’s Gas
Quick Oil Change
1303 College Ave. 894-7274
Loboettes
You're Tops!
Congratulations
On Your
Winning Season!
i
R. C. Vaughn
Oil Company
205 College
Night 894-4236
894-3414
Night 894-6901
OVERDRIVE—Lcvclland Loboette Jeree Blakemore (23) puts up a shot
against Estacado earlier in the year. Blakemore averaged 8.3 points per
game for the Loboettes, who currently stand at 32-1 on the season. (Staff
Photo)
We Love The
Levelland
Loboettes
And Lee Ann Potter!
Win State Girls!
We Support The
Loboettes!
And We
Appreciate
Your Support.
Thanks,
Levelland!
1203 College Ave.
894-9696
The Levelland
Loboettes Are
Outstanding!
They've worked hard
all year and we're
proud
of them!
Win State Girls!
BR#
START THE ACTION--!
eite Lee Ann Potter (25) prepares
to inbound the ball in a game
earlier this season. The 5-5 senior
was the Loboettes’ sixth player this
season, and has played for the
varsity squad for two years. (Staff
Photo) _ ’
Pharmacy
111 John Dupre Dr.
894-0146
v
i
l
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Lucas, Marlene. Levelland and Hockley County News-Press (Levelland, Tex.), Vol. 10, No. 94, Ed. 1 Wednesday, March 1, 1989, newspaper, March 1, 1989; Levelland, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1147643/m1/19/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting South Plains College.