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Man on a Mission: Stony Point’s Antoine Thompson strives for success on and off the court
Stony Point Boys Basketball Coach Antoine Thompson is on a mission.
Sure, Thompson would like to lead his Tigers back to the UIL 6A Championship game for a second straight season and come away victorious this time, but he’s thinking much bigger.
“I pride myself in building a better society by increasing rigor and opportunity amongst student-athletes today,” Thompson boldly stated on the Tigers’ basketball booster club site. “Serving others is a profound dedication of mine, and building relationships with young student-athletes is residual motivation for me.”
Thompson, a four-year varsity letter-winner at Manor High School and two-time All SCAC collegiate player at Austin College, returned to the Austin area as Stony Point’s boys head basketball coach prior to the 2022-23 season. Thompson, 33, inherited a Tigers program that after years of sub-.500 seasons, had gone 24-9 the previous year under his predecessor. The young coach kicked in the afterburners – and his Tigers responded with a 32-2 campaign that saw them reach the regional semifinals in his first year as a varsity head coach anywhere.
Last season’s squad followed up with a gaudy 38-2 mark, falling in the 6A State Finals to Plano East. As of press time, Stony Point sits at 13-0 in District 25-6A and 26-4 overall (including two overtime losses). A third consecutive 30-win season is definitely within reach.
When asked to explain how Thompson, whose only previous coaching experience was as an assistant at Austin LBJ and the head coach for ASAK basketball, an Adidas-sponsored Select team, was able to elevate Stony Point’s program so fast, he had a ready explanation.
“Just my ability to be consistent with these young men,” he stated simply. “The work that we put in is equivalent to what collegiate campuses are doing at the Division 1 and Division 2 level. And the buy-in from the parents and the players; just parents and players understanding the magnitude of, if you have aspirations of college or hard working in life, period, we try to manifest that through basketball and we utilize basketball as a tool. And it’s just sharpening these young men up to manifesting what their life blueprint is gonna look like.”
While Thompson has certainly whipped his Tigers into shape on the court, it’s that last part -- what that discipline and work ethic means beyond the court -- that matters most to the consummate educator and mentor, an AVID coordinator at Stony Point High School.
“I think it’s parallel to everything we want to advocate for within the program,” he declared. “Of the 162 young men (that have) come through the program in the last three years, we only had one individual fail that entire time. So, it correlates to everything that we do.
“We try to push work ethic in the classroom; we try to push work ethics on the floor, and we try to push just being upstanding young me in the community. We built that over the last three years, and it’s been a great opportunity for us to continue to build the manifestation of what a solidified program out of Central Texas looks like, beyond the Westlakes, the LBJs, the Lake Travises of the world.”
The Tigers have taken tremendous strides to inject themselves into those “best in the area conversations and Thompson is quick to share the credit.
“What Stony Point has done, they were in the middle of the pack, lower pack… (Stony Point) was a football school early on,” he acknowledged. “It’s a testament to my coaching staff; it’s a testament to the player personnel that have come through the last three years under my tutelage… of why this success is happening.
“We’re pretty resilient with expectations from players to parents to community supporters. We have a standard and we live by that standard. It’s just a great opportunity for us to continue what the last two years’ teams have built and we’re in a good spot right now. We’re learning and we’re growing.”
With a few isolated exceptions -- Westlake, the Cedar Park Lady Timberwolves, Liberty Hill’s boys and girls teams, and now Stony Point come to mind – Central Texas has lagged behind other parts of the state in terms of state-level success on the court. Changing that might be one of Thompson’s secondary missions.
“I speak for a lot of coaches; if you compare us to San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, the major cities, we don’t have the (resources and) facilities that gravitate to what successful programs have an opportunity of building. We don’t have access to what great programs throughout the state have accessibility to,” Thompson stated. “So, I’m trying to build that. I’m trying to build resources for individuals that need it.
“Basketball is growing, and Stony Point is a driving factor in that right now and I’m just trying to expand that. And the lack of resources that we have, it kind of negates the ability to grow the game in Round Rock, in Austin and in the Central Texas area.”
With the UIL’s change to the playoff structure dividing all conferences into Division 1 and Division 2 brackets, Stony Point has a decent shot at another deep playoff run, perhaps even returning to the state tournament locked in as a D2 squad. If the Tigers can return, Thompson knows it will help his desire to elevate the visibility of Boys Basketball in Central Texas.
Regardless of what happens on the court, however, Thompson’s favorite part about coaching is obvious: “Relationships and being able to see these young men grow into men and exploring the world and becoming better people than they were when I saw them as young scholar athletes.”
In other words, Thompson knows that what’s more important than bringing a state championship trophy to Stony Point High School is sending exceptional young men out into the community.
That’s his mission.
THE FINAL 48: UIL Football State Championship Preview -- North Crowley vs. Westlake (6A-D1)
The stage is set for a showdown of epic proportions. AT&T Stadium will host the final game of the season, where the North Crowley Panthers and the Westlake Chaparrals will face off for the UIL 6A-D1 State Championship.
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North Crowley is coming off one of the most exhilarating games of the year, having edged out defending state champs Duncanville 36-34 in a highly-anticipated State Semifinal rematch.
That win pushed their perfect season to 15-0, earning them the No. 1 ranking in Texas, according to MaxPreps.
At the heart of their success is senior quarterback Chris Jimerson (North Dakota signee), who threw four touchdown passes in the win—bringing his season total to 54—and accumulated 256 total yards.
Running back Cornelius Warren III (UNLV) was equally dominant, shredding Duncanville’s typically stout defense with 223 yards from scrimmage and two scores.
On the receiving end of Jimerson’s passes, wideout Quentin Gibson (Colorado) continues to be a game-changer. With 86 catches for 1,828 yards and 18 touchdowns this season, Gibson is a constant threat.
If that isn’t enough, coach Ray Gates can easily incorporate the team’s various other weapons – such as Utah-signee Daniel Bray (898 all-purpose yards, 14 TDs), WR Kevin Moore (706 yards, 8 TDs), and sophomore RB Kiante Ingram (609 rushing yards, 13 TDs) – to light up the scoreboard.
The defense, led by standout linebacker Jonathan Cunningham (Texas-signeeip) and senior safety Gaylon McNeal (Washington State), had its hands full against Duncanville's explosive offense but managed to force two turnovers, helping the offense capitalize on key opportunities.
With an average of just 17.4 points allowed per game, the Panthers will need that same defensive resilience to contain Westlake’s high-powered offense.
Veterans Ja’Brelle Asberry (Sr. MLB) and Neuntae Cassey (Sr. DE) should also have key parts to play in the team’s effort to stifle the Chaps.
This marks North Crowley’s first appearance in a State Title game since 2003, when they won the Class 4A-D1 championship. A win on Saturday would give the Panthers their second overall and cement their place among Texas’ elite.
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On the other side, the Westlake Chaparrals come into this game red-hot, having won 12 straight games and improving their record to 14-1.
Their most recent victory—a 35-10 upset of North Shore in the State Semifinals—denied the Mustangs their sixth consecutive trip to the UIL Championship.
Westlake’s offense, led by junior quarterback Rees Wise, has been a juggernaut all season, averaging over 43 points per game. Wise has thrown for nearly 2,500 yards and 23 touchdowns this year, while also adding 358 rushing yards and 13 more scores with his legs.
Senior running back Grady Bartlett has complemented Wise’s production with 1,029 all-purpose yards and 14 total touchdowns.
The receiving corps has been dynamic, with Wise spreading the ball around to a trio of seniors: Baylor-signee Brody Wilhelm (39 receptions, 600 yards, 9 TDs), Cal Livengood (34 receptions, 525 yards, 5 TDs), and Chase Bowen (31 receptions, 546 yards, 3 TDs).
Defensively, Westlake is just as formidable.
Senior linebacker Elliott Schaper (Duke-signee) has been an absolute beast, with 124 tackles, 28 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, and 3 interceptions.
The Chaparrals’ secondary, led by lightning-fast DB George Jones III (32 tackles, 7 INTs) and versatile safety Brandon Clark (76 tackles, 8 TFL, 3 INTs), is among the best in the state.
Additionally, the likes of Thompson Bennett (78 tackles, 2 INTs), Payton Luther (70 tackles, 1 INT), Bo Massengale (64 tackles, 7 TFL), and Maddox Flynt (59 tackles, 10 TFL, 4 sacks) make up one of the most well-rounded defenses in Texas.
This will be Westlake’s 12th appearance in a State Championship game. The Chaparrals are aiming for their fifth title, and they’re determined to add another to their collection after they secured a three-peat against Guyer in 2021.
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The main event of the 2024 season takes place this Saturday at 7:00 PM, when these two 6A heavyweights clash at AT&T Stadium.