Derrick Evans shines as little big man for Abilene Wylie boys basketball team

Derrick Evans isn’t your typical post player, but what the Wylie senior lacks in size he makes up for in tenacity on the basketball court.

Good luck stopping him, too.

“It’s amazing what he’s able to do,” Wylie coach Gregg Ruffin said. “You watch what he does. He doesn’t make true post moves, but he has a quick, little burst of energy around the basket that he’s really good at. He plays with such a passion and fever that’s hard to match. If you don’t match it, that’s when he starts having success.”

While Evans isn’t necessarily small, not at 6-foot-3, 170 pounds, he still sometimes faces much taller and bigger opponents in the paint.

Yet even the big guys struggle to fend off Evans.

“It doesn’t faze him one bit,” Ruffin said. “He’s a competitor. He does things for you a lot of people don’t do. He goes diving into tables and chairs. He plays with such a passion that you’ve got to have him on the court. And you’ve got to take the bad with the good. But he’s been a force for us the past three years. It’s fun to watch him work when it’s going his way.”

More: High School Basketball Michael Bacon living dream as a head coach for Abilene Cooper boys basketball team

More: High School Football Brooks Reese adapts to playing for dad with Abilene High basketball

Keeping a cool head

Evans, a standout receiver in football, didn’t start playing basketball until five years ago. He still plays the game at times with a football mentality — something that sometimes gets him in trouble.

“I get caught up in the game,” said Evans, who will play football for Hardin-Simmons in the fall. “I’m real passionate about the game itself.”

Evans, though, is trying to rein in his emotions on the court while maintaining his passionate play.

“Me being a senior and having the motor I do, I’ve got to keep my head cool,” he said. “A couple of games, I’ve had the hot head.”

Still, when things got heated in Tuesday’s 51-49 victory over Southtown rival Abilene Cooper, it was Evans who kept the team together and focused. Wylie, which trailed much of the game, rallied from a 43-39 deficit late in the game to pull out the win in the District 4-5A contest at Bulldog Gym.

The Bulldogs (14-13 overall, 4-3 district) are tied with Lubbock Monterey (12-16, 4-3) for third with a two-game cushion over Abilene Cooper going into Friday’s game at Monterey.

Isaiah Carrillo had a game-high 19 points in Tuesday’s game, while Evans had 11, including an old-fashioned 3-point play for the game-winning points with 41.7 seconds remaining.

“Today, on the victory, it was just keeping everybody together when times got rough and we got down,” Evans said.

It hasn’t always been that way for Evans. He’s let the heat of the moment overwhelm him at times in the past, even at times this season.

“He still has that football, that pit bull mentality, and sometimes it gets him," Ruffin said. "I know sometimes people don’t understand that, and they get frustrated watching him. But we’ve got to have him on the floor, because what he brings to the team is unmatched.”

And like he showed in Tuesday’s game against a heated rival, Evans can play with a cool, level head and lead.

“That’s the maturity that’s come with his senior year,” Ruffin said. “He’s trying to be a leader and a part of that is learning how to lead. As the season has progressed, he’s learned that and he’s becoming a really good leader for us in the locker room and the floor. Kids can watch him and learn that, ‘Hey, I need to work that hard, too.’ You can feed off that.”

Big dog mentality

Evans bloomed into a potent post player last season — averaging 13.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.3 steals in earning first-team All-District 4-5A honors. He shot 61% from the field.

He fits well into the Bulldogs scheme, too. Wylie likes to shoot the 3-point goal, while Evans cleans up on the boards down low. Carrillo, too, is good at driving to the basket and dishing off to Evans when he doesn’t have a clear shot.

Once in Evans hands, it’s a pretty good bet it’s going in the basket.

“He was a receiver in football, so he’s got good hands around the basket,” Ruffin said. “He’s ready to catch when those guys drive in there and dump it to him. He rarely misses those.”

Evans also is a relentless rebounder.

“He is good around the basket, trying to position himself and reading shots and getting rebounds,” Ruffin said. “He’s a quick jumper. He may not jump the highest, but he’s quick. He does a good job reading and getting rebounds and putting it back.”

It's a style that works for Evans and the Bulldogs. He relies on his speed and quickness rather than the usual post moves.

“He’s not one we’re going to throw it in there and he’s going to back down, back down and then shoot a jump hook,” Ruffin said. “He’s not going to shoot a Kareem sky hook. He won’t sit there and up-and-under you. He’s just going to use his quickness and strength.”

And he’s going to battle on every possession, whether he’s double-teamed or going against a much bigger opponent.

“Even though I’m not the tallest, people say I have a dog in me. Unleash the pit bull,” Evans said. “I don’t really see size. I see heart. Who wants it more? That’s my mindset. And every time I want it more.”

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Derrick Evans comes up big as Abilene Wylie's tenacious post player