Coach now one win from losing odd hairstyle as The King's Academy makes first state final

Nashville Tennessean

Blake Derrick made a deal with his The King's Academy girls basketball team.

The third-year TKA coach will cut his hair — specifically a long, single dreadlock that sits at the top of his head and is wrapped together with a rubber band — if the Lady Lions win a state championship.

Well, TKA is one win away from that happening following a 62-45 win over Goodpasture in the Division II-A girls basketball semifinals Thursday at Lipscomb's Allen Arena.

"I used to have a regular man bun, started twisting it and it turned into one long dread," Derrick said. "I left it and haven't cut it since.

King’s Academy head coach Blake Derrick yells at his team in the first half against Goodpasture during the TSSAA Division II State Basketball Championship semifinal game at Allen Arena Thursday, March 5, 2020 in Nashville, Tenn.

"Everybody makes fun of me. I don't really care. Literally, I get pictures of it. I'm just going to be me. If people don't like that, that's perfectly fine."

TKA (25-6) showed no first-game jitters while winning its first state tournament game in its first appearance. The Lady Lions never trailed.

TKA plays the winner of the semifinal between Trinity Christian and Tipton-Rosemark at noon on Saturday at Lipscomb in the championship.

"We have been working for this since day one," TKA senior Taylor Carter said. "We've done everything possible to get to this position. Thanks to (Derrick), it's paid off."

Goodpasture (29-7) shot 17-of-57 (29.8 percent) from the game and was just 5-of-24 in the first half to trail 28-12 at halftime.

King’s Academy celebrates their 62 to 45 win over Goodpasture in the TSSAA Division II State Basketball Championship semifinal game at Allen Arena Thursday, March 5, 2020 in Nashville, Tenn.

"You can't dig that big of a hole against a good team," Goodpasture coach Joseph Simmons said. "The key for us is we just weren't making shots early."

TKA sophomore Jennifer Sullivan, who has eight Division I offers, including Belmont, Tennessee Tech and Chattanooga, finished with 25 points and was 9-of-14 from the free throw line. Teammate Taylor Carter, a Milligan signee, had 11 points and was 4-of-6 from the free throw line.

TKA hit 27 of 40 free throws while Goodpasture was just 5-of-7.

Goodpasture's Ally Welfel, a Lee signee, finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds before fouling out in the final minute.

"It hurts knowing this is the last time I'll ever get to play with those girls," said Welfel. "We all love each other so much. It's a sisterhood."

Reach Tom Kreager at 615-259-8089 or tkreager@tennessean.com and on Twitter @Kreager.