Nate Schneider
Sports Scene
A quick Google search of the Garrett brothers, Charles and Markele, at Bridgeport High School will net you story after story about their nightly contributions to the success of the Bearcats.
More stories will come back focused on Charles, due to him being a year older and a four-year varsity standout and a big-time scorer most games. But that isn’t to say Markele hasn’t played a major role the last two seasons on the varsity level after spending his freshman year on JV.
Needless to say, Bridgeport would not be sitting pretty at 14-1 overall and in first place at a perfect 9-0 in the Tri-Valley Conference East standings if the Garrett brothers were not impacting each contest in a huge way.
The Bearcats are coached by Kevin Marshall, who is in his first year at the helm of the varsity after previously coaching the junior varsity. He has had a close relationship with the Garrett’s their entire basketball career due to him being their uncle.
“I’ve coached those two kids since the second and third grade,” Marshall said. “They are fantastic kids, always wanting to learn and get better. They’ve been playing together since elementary school and in AAU, so the chemistry is naturally there and being brothers helps even more. They know where each other are on the court at all times. They feed off each other’s energy and when one is down, the other will pick him up. I’m very proud of the way they’ve grown as basketball players and young men.”
Charles has been a dominant force this season, averaging 20.2 points along with 6.3 rebounds. He is also dishing out 3.9 assists, recording 3.0 steals and blocking 0.7 shots per.
Marshall has glowing praise for his senior nephew, who has narrowed down his college decision and is expected to make his announcement on Feb. 22.
“His athletic ability and leadership stands out,” Marshall said. “He tends to hold the guys accountable. He’s really shown some improvement in his leadership from years past. And the basketball ability has always continued to improve since he spends so much time working at it.”
But in a huge home game against Frankenmuth on Feb. 16, Charles was forced to the bench for a lengthy amount of time due to foul trouble and eventually fouled out.
Into the spotlight stepped Markele, who was fantastic down the stretch and finished with 11 points of his own as he hit three 3-points while also playing lockdown defense in a 60-53 victory.
“It was unfortunate to see Charles sitting out, but Markele really helped pick up the slack,” Marshall stated.
Bridgeport was down 32-24 at halftime before roaring back in the second half, showing it can win big games even if the older Garrett does not have a massive impact.
On the season, Markele is averaging 13.5 points per game which is good for third on the team behind his brother and junior SirQuarius Ball (16.3 ppg). He is also compiling averages of 5.5 assists from his point guard position along with 5.2 rebounds and 3.9 steals.
Marshall adds that Markele has really come into own this season as he is in his second go-around as part of the varsity squad.
“When I took over coaching this team I had a talk with him before the season,” Marshall said. “I knew Markele’s mindset as a scorer and leader and someone who can do anything he wants on the basketball court. He’s even different from Charles in that regard. I told him there’s no more time to sit in the background. It’s time for you to step up now. Because with those two brothers plus a couple other players contributing big things on our roster, our team is that much more dangerous.”
Bridgeport continued its season this week with games at Birch Run and Flint Hamady, while it returned home for a Feb. 23 home showdown against Essexville-Garber.