Little Brother Not So Little Anymore
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
"I call him my little, not-so little brother," Mason McIntyre said of his 6-foot-4 younger brother.[[In-content Ad]]The youngest of four, Troy's the last child of Todd and Jami McIntyre to come through Triton High School, a school which both parents actually graduated from as well.
"It's fun to have such family support," Troy said. "It's made this more special, being able to share it with them."
The experience Troy speaks of is his Trojans run in the 2008 IHSAA, Class A tournament. After already claiming sectional and regional crowns, the Trojans are now preparing for a semistate contest with Lafayette Central Catholic Saturday at 1 p.m. at Lafayette Jefferson High School.
The semistate game is the farthest any McIntyre brother has gotten, including oldest brother Ben, a 1995 Triton alum and current police officer, and Mason, Triton's first-year athletic director. Mason was a part of Triton's 1999 sectional championship team, but it's sister Cassi that has most of the bragging rights in the family, being a part of Triton's 2000 and 2001 state championship squads.
"She's got two rings, and we've got none," Mason said of his younger sister, a 2002 Triton graduate, currently working as a speech pathologist.
With all the kids participating in athletics, the youngest of the four was inundated with sports, even if he may have been a little too small to play at times.
"We've always been competitive," Troy said of his family. "Even when I was so much younger, they'd always include me in the basketball and football games."
However, the three-sport Triton star eventually began to narrow the gap on his older brother Mason.
"I used to let him stay in games, now he's letting me stay in them," Mason said of one-on-one matchups with Troy.
Mason goes back somewhere between Troy's eighth and ninth grade years as to when the younger brother began giving his college-aged sibling a tough time on the concrete slab of a basketball court outside the McIntyre home.
"I remember the game," Troy said, going back to the first time he defeated Mason. "I hit six three-pointers in a game, and went into the house bragging to mom."
And what did mom think about that?
"I think she thought you let me win," Troy joked with Mason.
"I probably told her I did," Mason responded.
But Mason didn't allow his brother to win that game, and the third-ranked Trojans aren't looking for the fourth-ranked Central Catholic Knights to hand over a win either.
"Their guards are really solid," Triton coach Jason Groves said. "They're probably the best duo we've seen all year. They create their own shots off penetration or kick it out."
Central Catholic is led in scoring by junior Dru Anthrop's 16 ppg, connecting on 57 percent of his field goals. Older brother Jade Anthrop leads the team with 7.3 apg, hitting 51 percent of his shots and shooting 84 percent from the free-throw line. The team from Lafayette also sports a strong frontline, led by senior Daniel Mills.
"They're a load inside," Groves said of Mills and 6-9 post partner Cameron Loepker."They're very big and a force on the offensive and defensive ends of the floor."
Luckily for Groves, he's also got some pretty good "bigs" in 6-3 junior Colton Keel, 6-6 senior Jake Everett and 6-4 McIntyre.
"They may be a little stronger at every position," Groves said of Central Catholic. "We have size, but their biggest mismatch may be at guard, where they're so quick."
Having always competed against older, stronger siblings, Troy McIntyre's used to being doubted, which is what many are saying about the Trojans against Central Catholic. But that's not going to stop him and his teammates from giving it their all against a team that lost to Oregon-Davis in last year's semistate, which was also played at Lafayette Jefferson.
"Their key to success all season has been their level-headedness," Groves said of his team.
That level-headedness may come with the small-town mentality, which means family and friends come out for support - a staple in the McIntyre home.
"Everybody goes," Mason said about the family attending basketball games. "Troy's been going to basketball games since he was knee high to a grasshopper. The parents still go to all the games, and the siblings travel in to go."
And that support hasn't been lost on Troy.
"I've been used to seeing them all have success since I was little," Troy said of his two brothers and sister. "That may be something that's pushed me."
And with his brother working as the school's athletic director, he doesn't have to worry about him being too far away.
"It's pretty special," Mason said of his job. "I coached the JV team the last two years, so I've been a part of this senior group since they were sophomores. Since I don't do that anymore, I'm not with them as much, but I'm still really involved."
The next thing Mason would like to be involved in is setting up his alma mater's travel plans for a trip to the state finals at Conseco Fieldhouse. Before that, he'll just have to cheer with the rest of his family for Troy and the Trojans at Saturday's semistate game.
"I call him my little, not-so little brother," Mason McIntyre said of his 6-foot-4 younger brother.[[In-content Ad]]The youngest of four, Troy's the last child of Todd and Jami McIntyre to come through Triton High School, a school which both parents actually graduated from as well.
"It's fun to have such family support," Troy said. "It's made this more special, being able to share it with them."
The experience Troy speaks of is his Trojans run in the 2008 IHSAA, Class A tournament. After already claiming sectional and regional crowns, the Trojans are now preparing for a semistate contest with Lafayette Central Catholic Saturday at 1 p.m. at Lafayette Jefferson High School.
The semistate game is the farthest any McIntyre brother has gotten, including oldest brother Ben, a 1995 Triton alum and current police officer, and Mason, Triton's first-year athletic director. Mason was a part of Triton's 1999 sectional championship team, but it's sister Cassi that has most of the bragging rights in the family, being a part of Triton's 2000 and 2001 state championship squads.
"She's got two rings, and we've got none," Mason said of his younger sister, a 2002 Triton graduate, currently working as a speech pathologist.
With all the kids participating in athletics, the youngest of the four was inundated with sports, even if he may have been a little too small to play at times.
"We've always been competitive," Troy said of his family. "Even when I was so much younger, they'd always include me in the basketball and football games."
However, the three-sport Triton star eventually began to narrow the gap on his older brother Mason.
"I used to let him stay in games, now he's letting me stay in them," Mason said of one-on-one matchups with Troy.
Mason goes back somewhere between Troy's eighth and ninth grade years as to when the younger brother began giving his college-aged sibling a tough time on the concrete slab of a basketball court outside the McIntyre home.
"I remember the game," Troy said, going back to the first time he defeated Mason. "I hit six three-pointers in a game, and went into the house bragging to mom."
And what did mom think about that?
"I think she thought you let me win," Troy joked with Mason.
"I probably told her I did," Mason responded.
But Mason didn't allow his brother to win that game, and the third-ranked Trojans aren't looking for the fourth-ranked Central Catholic Knights to hand over a win either.
"Their guards are really solid," Triton coach Jason Groves said. "They're probably the best duo we've seen all year. They create their own shots off penetration or kick it out."
Central Catholic is led in scoring by junior Dru Anthrop's 16 ppg, connecting on 57 percent of his field goals. Older brother Jade Anthrop leads the team with 7.3 apg, hitting 51 percent of his shots and shooting 84 percent from the free-throw line. The team from Lafayette also sports a strong frontline, led by senior Daniel Mills.
"They're a load inside," Groves said of Mills and 6-9 post partner Cameron Loepker."They're very big and a force on the offensive and defensive ends of the floor."
Luckily for Groves, he's also got some pretty good "bigs" in 6-3 junior Colton Keel, 6-6 senior Jake Everett and 6-4 McIntyre.
"They may be a little stronger at every position," Groves said of Central Catholic. "We have size, but their biggest mismatch may be at guard, where they're so quick."
Having always competed against older, stronger siblings, Troy McIntyre's used to being doubted, which is what many are saying about the Trojans against Central Catholic. But that's not going to stop him and his teammates from giving it their all against a team that lost to Oregon-Davis in last year's semistate, which was also played at Lafayette Jefferson.
"Their key to success all season has been their level-headedness," Groves said of his team.
That level-headedness may come with the small-town mentality, which means family and friends come out for support - a staple in the McIntyre home.
"Everybody goes," Mason said about the family attending basketball games. "Troy's been going to basketball games since he was knee high to a grasshopper. The parents still go to all the games, and the siblings travel in to go."
And that support hasn't been lost on Troy.
"I've been used to seeing them all have success since I was little," Troy said of his two brothers and sister. "That may be something that's pushed me."
And with his brother working as the school's athletic director, he doesn't have to worry about him being too far away.
"It's pretty special," Mason said of his job. "I coached the JV team the last two years, so I've been a part of this senior group since they were sophomores. Since I don't do that anymore, I'm not with them as much, but I'm still really involved."
The next thing Mason would like to be involved in is setting up his alma mater's travel plans for a trip to the state finals at Conseco Fieldhouse. Before that, he'll just have to cheer with the rest of his family for Troy and the Trojans at Saturday's semistate game.
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