HOHENFELS, Germany -- Not only did J.J. Calhoun and Jamie Tompkins help drive the Hohenfels High School Tigers to victory in the Department of Defense Dependant Schools Europe boys basketball Division Two Championships, but they have been selected as part of the Region 3 All-European Team.
"It's like the culminating event to the basketball season," said Tigers coach, James Calhoun. "It's a real honor because, what we did was basically select the top 20 athletes across DODDS Europe."
The recognition came at a price of hard work and dedication, including practices 5-6 times a week.
"If transportation was provided, we had practice," J.J. said.
"Even if we didn't have practice, like on Saturdays, all of us would still meet at the gym and go through things," Tompkins added. "Hard work paid off in the end."
Best friends on and off the court, the boys contend that their bond increases their proficiency in the game.
"The chemistry between us is strong," said J.J. "Like playing with him, I know when Jamie's going to drive and pull up, or when he's going to drive and ditch. That chemistry is built not only on the court, but outside the court as well."
The Tigers' hunt for the European championship actually began last year, when they lost the final match to Aviano. Coach Calhoun had planned for that to be his final year coaching, but his team had other ideas.
"A few of the guys said 'Coach, we need to take care of business. We have some unfinished business, and if you come back we're going to have the same team in place and we're going to go back and we're going to take it,'" Calhoun said. "These guys, they predicted it and made it come true."
"It started out rough at the beginning of the season, though," Tompkins admitted. "At one point we were down like 3-5."
"I knew we were going to have to work for it," J.J. said.
But work they did, with Calhoun breaking practices into workshops geared toward various skills and stressing the Tigers' strengths, "speed and athleticism."
"Everybody understood their role, and that was how we had our practices structured," Calhoun said.
"The championship game was very difficult to me because I injured my thumb, and it threw off my game completely," said J.J. "But because it was a championship game I didn't want to express how much pain I was in because I knew my dad was going to take me out, so I just sucked it up for the team."
In addition to J.J.'s injury, Tompkins had also injured his ankle during the match with Marymount International School.
"It's difficult when you're playing two games a day, you don't really get that break," Calhoun said. "I almost lost both of them that day."
As the school year wraps up, the two seniors are already looking ahead to college where they hope to both attend Marshall University in West Virginia. Calhoun has arranged an opportunity for MU Assistant Coach Mark Cline to view the boys online at a basketball clinic in Bonn later this month.
"From what I understand, he (Cline) has a pretty good class coming in, and he is looking for a point guard," said Calhoun. "And Jamie makes shots you can't even believe!"
Calhoun admits that sometimes coaching his own son could be difficult.
"There was a couple times when I still had my dad hat on during a game," he said. "But those guys did a pretty good job of reminding me."
"As a coach, you go in, you adjust, you bring in the right personnel, and you take care of business," said Calhoun. "And from a dad's perspective...it's always a special thing for a father and son to combine to win a championship."
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