Crestviwe boys open with Vikings in District 2-5A basketball tournament

Crestview boys basketball coach Keith White knows his Bulldogs will have their work cut out for them in the District 2-5A tournament this weekend at Niceville.

Crestview, the No. 3 seed in the four-team tournament, opens play against No. 2 seed Fort Walton Beach on Friday at 5:30 p.m.

The winner of the game between the Bulldogs and Vikings will play the winner of the game between No. 1 seed Niceville and No. 4 seed Mosley at 7 p.m. on Saturday.

History, at least this year, might not favor the Bulldogs against the Vikings or the Eagles as each team beat Crestview twice this season.

The fact that Crestview has lost twice to Fort Walton Beach assures White his team won’t concentrating on the championship game.

“We are not worried about Niceville on Saturday,” he said. “We are worried about Friday. If we can get in (to the championship game) then we will start worrying about them (Niceville).”

White is concerned about Fort Walton Beach and the problems it presents for his team.

“They play a lot of pressure defense,” he said, “and they’ve got Robert (Willis) inside, who is big and who we don’t really have an answer for. And they’ve got another big guy that really hurt last game.”

Even with those challenges, White believes the Bulldogs are capable of beating the Vikings to secure a spot in next week’s regional quarterfinals.

“I think we are pretty evenly matched and whoever has a good game that night is probably going to win,” he said. “We are just going to show up and see what happens.

“We have to play really good defense and get some transition baskets. We have to put a lot of pressure on the ball – pressure their guards and try to get some turnovers and hopefully let that convert into some points.”

If the Bulldogs do make it to the championship game, in all likelihood, they will face the Eagles.

Niceville presents a different set of problems than the Vikings. But if the teams meet for the title Crestview will a similar game plan against the Eagles.

“Again, you have to play good defense on them,” White said. “We built a lot of confidence up the last time we played them with a 3-point game going into the fourth quarter. We pressured the ball a lot and tried to get it out of Kody’s (Williams) hands.

“He’s the one that makes things happen by breaking down defenses and just kicking (the ball out to an open shooter). What we did was try to get it out of his hands and make somebody else beat us and we had a pretty good game plan that built some confidence.”

Chris Pickett is hardly an unknown, but the senior guard could end up being the difference maker for the Bulldogs in the tournament.

“Chris Pickett has really stepped up,” White said. “He was struggling early to score points.

“He has always played hard defense and tried to get his teammates involved, but he has started scoring for us lately here toward the end (of the season) He’s really helped a lot as far as shooting inside because we really don’t have a true post player, and he has kind of taken on that role.”