Fast pace the key to West Morgan’s success

Jan. 30—TRINITY — The West Morgan men’s basketball team lives by a simple motto called Fast32.

That means playing fast all the time, a relentless style of basketball that doesn’t stop for the entire 32 minutes of a high school basketball game.

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“We want to play as fast as possible in every phase of the game, whether it’s offense or defense,” West Morgan head coach Bobby Meyer said. “It’s not necessarily about interceptions, it’s more about pace of play. That’s what we’re looking for.”

Meyer arrived at West Morgan before the 2024-25 season, but it was during his 11 seasons as head coach at Cullman that he began utilizing the up-tempo style of play. He said that at first his Cullman teams played like everyone else until a holiday tournament changed everything.

“It goes back to my coaching days at Cullman,” Meyer said. “One year we went to the mountains for a Christmas tournament and played a team from Douglas, Georgia. They forced us to play a fast-paced style that we weren’t used to, and we ended up losing 99-89, but that was the most points we had scored all year.”

Meyer, he was immediately hooked on the style of play.

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“It was a style that pushed hard on the court, played 94 feet of defense and focused on quick decisions. The coach had the philosophy that when you get the ball, you shoot it, pass it or sit on the bench,” he said. “After that, we kind of took over the philosophy ourselves, and that’s where Fast32 was born.”

When Meyer took the job at West Morgan, he brought the Fast32 style with him, much to the delight of the Rebels players.

“It’s really fast and it’s fun to play. It meets expectations,” junior Landon Henderson said. “But it’s not easy. He (Meyer) holds us to a high standard.”

It’s safe to say that Fast32 was a success for West Morgan. After reaching the Elite Eight last season, the Rebels are currently 18-5 and ranked No. 3 in Class 4A. They also average 75 points per game.

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“It’s hard to quit,” Keelan Murphy said. “We play so fast, but we don’t lose control. And when we substitute, the guys who come in are just as good as the guys who come out.”

Despite how the season has gone so far for the Rebels, they are far from satisfied. After missing a Final Four game in each of the last two seasons, double-digit wins, area championships and Elite Eight appearances aren’t going to be enough this time around.

“When you get that close and you’re not able to get there, it eats away at you,” Henderson said. “Taking the next step has been our goal all year. That’s what motivates us.”

The good news for West Morgan is that its head coach believes the best is yet to come for his team.

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“We just feel like we haven’t played our best basketball yet,” Meyer said. “We’ve played a lot of good teams and we’ve been fortunate to win most of those games, but we’re still progressing toward what we consider our peak.”

West Morgan will look to rebuild its momentum heading into the playoffs Saturday night when it faces Priceville in the Morgan County Tournament final. In order to finally take the next step and reach the Final Four, which would be the first time since 1973, the Rebels will have to navigate a difficult road. They feel ready to take on the challenge.

“If we continue to do what we’re doing and play the best we’re capable of playing, then I think we can go pretty far,” Murphy said.

— caleb.suggs@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2395. Twitter @CalebSuggs2