Tyler Johnson and St. Francis

Here is a kid and a school not receiving that much attention:

Start to finish, top to bottom, St. Francis is a title contender
Mitch Stephens, Special to The Chronicle
February 19, 2010

St. Francis boys basketball coach Mike Motil often tells the story of how his team's lone Division I-bound player, Tyler Johnson, missed a layup in his first game on the freshman team.

And how he cried.

"Real tears ... on the bench," said Motil, who was then the freshman coach. "I told him if he didn't stop crying I couldn't put him back in. Ever."

Motil likes telling the tale of Johnson's humble beginning, not to embarrass the 6-foot-2 guard, who will play at Fresno State next season, but to illustrate two points:

One, Johnson is a tremendously passionate player.

And two, at St. Francis, it's not about where you start, but where you finish...

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