Jones, Allison learn big lessons in coaching after guiding their teams to the post-season

There are some defining moments in a coaching career.
Just ask both 2018 Evangeline Parish Coaches of the Year, Ville Platte High’s Tommy Jones and Mamou High’s Danisha Allison-Lewis.
For Jones, that defining moment came after his first year of taking over the Bulldog basketball program.
Coming into that year, Jones had talent at every position, especially in the post, and he knew it would just be a matter of giving them some minor direction and the team would take it from there. However, after that season, the inside game became less filled with bodies and Jones had to find other ways to utilize the type of players he has had on his team.
“Year one, I had one of the biggest teams in the state with a ton of experience,” stated Jones. “Lately, we have not had the size we normally had. So, we have had to coach these guys up and change the offensive philosophy. But, it has worked out well for us. Even though we are usually out sized when we step on the floor, we are still able to compete at a high level.
Jones and the Bulldogs finished this year with an overall record of 16-12 and a second round playoff appearance in Class 2A, along with the District 6-2A runner-up title.
When reflecting on the season as a whole, Jones was pleased with the way the team performed, especially when hit with a number of injuries and players not being able to play because of the flu that was so widespread in 2017-18.
“The season was a little up and down,” said Jones. “We were not able to be as consistent as I would have liked because at times we had players out of the line-up with either injuries or illness. We wanted to accomplish more, no doubt,”
“But, the positive side of all of that, was that we had a number of younger players step up and give us some quality minutes,” he continued. “We could have hung our head and given up, but we fought our way to a playoff win.”
For second year head coach Danisha Allison-Lewis, the learning curve was a short drive from year one. The young mentor came to Mamou with a plethora of talent in 2016-17 and was able to help guide them to the Class 2A semi-finals.
After losing a ton of talent from last year, the Lady Demons were not able to repeat the success from the year before, but still garnered a spot in the Class 3A post-season. Mamou ended the year with an overall record of 9-17.
“This year truly humbled me,” stated Allison-Lewis. “I did not know how to react to this year. All my life I have been on a team that plays fast paced. So, this year, I had to really step back and realize that this team was not going to be able to play that style of basketball. I found out we were going to have to slow things down.”
“That transition made me have to become a better coach,” she continued. “I had to make the adjustment in my coaching style. I told myself that I needed to be a better coach, so that the team could become a better team.”
With that being said, Allison-Lewis now knows what exactly needs to be done this off-season if the Lady Demons hope to return to the glory of two years ago.
“We are really going to have to focus on the defensive side of the ball this coming off-season,” commented Allison-Lewis. “We are going to be small again, so we will have to compensate for that with our speed. I feel that we will be able to play a ton faster come next season. A lot of our younger players showed some promise during the course of the this year and I am looking forward to continue seeing them progress and get better and better everyday.”