1961 Newton County p1

From 7-5-14

1961 season with Bob Mitchell (15 ppg), Alan Rowe (15 ppg & 15.2 rpg), & Billy Shaw (14.2 ppg) finally made "the year" happen! The Newton Co. Rams swept through 26 straight opponents to reach the region finals undefeated to face Madison Co in their new gym. With a standing-room only crowd on hand, the Rams warmed up in such a precise way that it carried over into the game (with a 69-48 victory). Finally, a highly-coveted region championship trophy belonged to Newton County! Now a new goal was the challenge. After a double overtime, "sudden death" period, Billy Shaw scored on a wild,twisting, left-hand layup for a 51-49 victory over the Cairo Syrupmakers. During the after-game celebration, Billy came over to me and said, "I could have made an easy shot, Coach, but I wanted to give you a thrill!"

The next day there was a caravan of cars headed to the Ga. Tech coliseum with signs on the cars which said "29 straight takes Newton to state!" The most successful season in Rams' history ended in the state semi-finals 48-43 to Headland HS. Sometimes, the first is always the hardest. The next year (1962), Billy Shaw (24 ppg), Michael Rutledge, & "spark plug" Henry Bowen, were primed for a repeat.

There were two young freshmen, Tim Christian & Stanley Harris, studying & learning, who would later bring the most-storied period in NCHS history. In one of the early road games when the team got off the bus, dressed in their sharp-looking blazers, one of the local boys said, "Look at those 'little ole boys! Our B-team could beat them!" Shaw spoke up and said, "maybe--but your varsity can't!"--& they couldn't! (The Rams' wins were already beginning to show a lot of confidence.). The Rams reached the semi-finals of the Region Tournament, with a trip on the line to the state tournament. The possibilities of a 2nd straight trip to Atlanta looked dismal, as the Rams trailed by 12 points with 3 minutes left in the game! The opposing coach & his team were celebrating the victory they thought they had won---but, they didn't know Billy Shaw! With 3 Newton starters on the bench with 5 fouls, in the team huddle, instructions were given, "Get the ball to Shaw, & get out of his way!" As he had done on numerous other occasions, Billy brought his team back to 63-60 win!! One of my lifetime remembrances of the celebration was the tearful hug between Michael Rutledge & & his dad, Dean, with Billy Dean in their hearts! After a 50-39 win over Hart Co in Gainesville for the Region Championship, the Rams were headed back to Atlanta again! It was a short trip, & a short game as a malfunctioning clock took several minutes from the game & helped a tired Murray Co. team to a 52-46 victory over the Rams. Murray Co., with their shortest player 6'4", ran "roughshod" over their next 3 opponents for the state title. So the "storied" 4-yr. career of Billy Shaw had come to an end with a record 101 wins, & only 13 defeats, 55 straight wins on the home court, 7 tournament titles & 2 region championships that would pave the way to many future championships later. Billy left NCHS as the all-time leading scorer with 1,552 career points, and a Newton-record 41 pts in a game, vs. Central Gwinnett. Our records showed Billy had won 9 games with a last-second shot, (but Shaw still insists it was 12 games)! The story continues tomorrow when the nearly-perfect '63 "Lady Rams" helped motivate the boys basketball team to win 69 of their next 70 games!