Few athletes in the Ozarks go airborne the way Central’s Tyrique Brooks does.
“His dunks are phenomenal,” said Central junior Rue Wells.
“I knew he was a good player,” said Central junior Devin Sanford. “I knew he was really athletic and flashy.”
For the Central Bulldogs, their view of Tyrique was always from the other side of the court.
“He was a really good opponent to play against,” Rue said. “He was exciting to watch and exciting to guard so that was fun.”
After three seasons at Waynesville, Tyrique is a dynamic piece of this year’s Central squad. His teammates sure are happy to have him.
“Playing with him now is more fun than playing against him,” Rue said. “It makes it even more exciting now to play with him since he is on your team. He just brings a joy to the crowd and to the excitement which makes the game really fun.”
Tyrique says transitioning from opponent to teammate was an easy process.
“Everybody just fed into me getting into the plays and stuff,” said Tyrique. “Nobody on the team here is selfish. Nobody is worried about scoring all the time. Everybody wants to see everybody win.”
But the Bulldogs say Tyrique brings more to the team than his on-court talents.
“I really got to know him as a person and he is really humble,” Devin said. “He is just a great player to play with.”
“He’s really caring about the people around him,” Rue said.
As the only senior on this squad, Tyrique is well aware of his role as a leader.
“I’m older than everybody so they are going to be watching what I am doing,” Tyrique said. “Sometimes I get frustrated, but you have to also think about your teammates as well because they are watching everything you are doing.”
He may be spending only one season with Central, but it’s clear he’s left an impact on the team.
“Thanks for being a good friend and a brother to me,” Devin said.
“We love the kid,” Rue said. “He has been good to us and it was fun playing with him and watching him. We really enjoy him and we wish the best of luck to him.”
Tyrique is playing college hoops for Missouri Southern State, so there is still plenty of time to catch his jams.
