23-03-2025
Why Ty Cobb was difference for Upperman's first TSSAA boys basketball state championship
MURFREESBORO — Ty Cobb took off from the free-throw line after the final horn blew, threw a fist in the air and then bounced himself off the post beneath the basket.
Cobb had seen his older sister, Jayla, have her championship celebration moment with Upperman when the Bees won the 2022 TSSAA basketball 3A girls state title. Cobb's mom, Amanda, didn't win a title but also played in a championship game for Upperman.
Now, it was the Cobb's turn. And he reveled in the moment.
Cobb finished with 31 points and 10 rebounds in Upperman's 65-55 victory over Tullahoma for the Class 3A TSSAA boys basketball state tournament championship Saturday at MTSU's Murphy Center. He was an easy pick for tournament MVP, averaging 31.3 points in three games.
'Ever since I was little bitty, I dreamed of playing in this game,' said Cobb, who was also named Class 3A Mr. Basketball earlier this week. 'I was a ball boy when we got put out in the final four against Greeneville in 2021 … It's just awesome. I'm really at a loss for words. It's surreal. I don't even know what to think right now, I'm just trying to soak it all in and go back and party with the community at home.'
Upperman (32-3) captured its first TSSAA basketball title by winning a heavyweight rematch. Tullahoma (32-5) defeated the Bees, 59-51, in the Region 4-3A championship game just weeks earlier.
Cobb wouldn't accept the same result this time. He had 16 points and six rebounds by halftime and scored 10 of Upperman's 13 points in the second quarter to put the Bees up 23-19 at the break.
'Sometimes you'll hear us in transition just say, 'Go!' and let him just go make a play,' McWilliams said. 'It's not necessarily real good coaching, but it (actually) is. You just get out of his way and let him do his thing, and he can break a drought.'
Cobb picked up a Division I offer from Tennessee Tech this week. More could follow. He turned heads with his play as a freshman but became dominant as a 6-foot-2 sophomore, putting on 20 pounds of muscle and increasing his bench press to 275 pounds.
Cobb finished with five assists against Tullahoma. He calmly swished a 3-pointer near the end of the first half, but it was his drives to the basket that challenged the Wildcats.
Cobb wasn't necessarily at full strength, either. He played with a sore groin muscle Saturday, he said.
'He's super athletic and he lowers his head and goes,' Tullahoma coach Jason Welch said. 'He's a super, super player. I think he's a tough matchup sometimes the way the game's called in high school. I thought we guarded him good at times and he made a couple good shots.'
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Amid the postgame celebration, McWilliams found his wife, Dana, who has led Upperman's girls program to three state titles since 2017.
'It was really emotional for her, emotional for me. We put in a lot of time, a lot of effort and a lot of work,' McWilliams said. 'Just to see each other be successful was pretty incredible. And I know how she was feeling, because I've done that three times. And every time has been good.'
Tyler Palmateer covers high school sports for The Tennessean. Have a story idea for Tyler? Reach him at tpalmateer@ and on the X platform, formerly Twitter, @tpalmateer83.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: TSSAA basketball state tournament: Ty Cobb leads Upperman to title
