ST. MARTINVILLE — Ihmaru Jones was recently named the Class 3A basketball Coach of the Year by the LSWA, and he also was honored as St. Martinville Senior High’s Teacher of the Year a few months ago.

“Your peers vote on it,” Jones said of the teaching honor. He teaches algebra and geometry. “I guess the faculty members see the work I put in. They know how hard it is to teach math.

“Most students hate math. You go in every day having inspiration, even though the kids are often frustrated.”

Jones, who is in his 17th year on the faculty at SMSH, keeps a positive outlook while teaching difficult subjects.

“I just like teaching, period,” he said. “I like engaging with young minds and watching them grow. I try to make the students understand that these are tools they’ll use daily.

“I find real-world applications to match what they’re learning. My relationship with the students can sometimes be rocky before they get smooth. It gets smoother when they engage and participate.”

In basketball, the Tigers started the season with a 7-6 mark and then caught fire down the stretch, going undefeated in district to finish the regular season with a 19-9 record.

SMSH went into the playoffs as a No. 11 seed and eliminated No. 22 Donaldsonville in its last home game.

The Tigers then proceeded to bounce No. 6 Ville Platte, No. 3 Sophie B. Wright and No. 2 Wossman before falling 52-47 to No. 1 Madison Prep in the finals.

“I thought it was a good season, especially with the pandemic,” said Jones, whose team had eight games either canceled or postponed due to COVID-19.

“It was a great season, but I believe we should have won the state title. Our guys got kind of fatigued in that game. I didn’t want to go to my bench because I wanted my seniors to control their own destiny.”

Two of SMSH’s key seniors were Datayvious Gabriel and Jalen Mitchell. A first-team All-State selection, Gabriel averaged 19 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game.

Mitchell, who was named Honorable Mention All-State, posted 14.5 ppg, along with 6 assists and 2 steals. Andrew Savoy, a deadly 3-point shooter with a knack for game-winning shots, will also be sorely missed.

“I liked watching them grow,” Jones said of his seniors. “One of my best memories was the game when we beat Ville Platte in the second round, the way we dominated from start to finish.

“When we went to Ville Platte and pulled up in the bus, everybody from their community was outside barbecuing and cooking like a big tailgate party. We were like, ‘Wow! They really take basketball seriously,’ and then we went and dominated. That really stuck with me.”

The Tigers trounced Ville Platte 55-41 before going to New Orleans and disposing of Sophie B. Wright on a last-second 3-pointer by Savoy.

“Beating Sophie B. Wright was another good memory,” Jones said. “I knew we would win. I wanted it to be a more convincing win but we lost a 5-point lead late in the game.”

Jones will also fondly remember the come-from-behind, semifinal win vs. Wossman in the Cajundome, which was the location of the Tigers’ 4A state championship victory in 2002. In addition, he mentioned the invaluable help provided by first-year assistant coach Arpad Zsold.

“I never thought I would win Coach of the Year in my second year as head coach,” said Jones, who was a long-time assistant to Darrel Mitchell Sr. “It’s going to be interesting next year. Going to the state championship really helped my underclassmen mentally.

“They’re more hungry to try and get back there to prove they can do it, too. Jayvyn Duncan and Brandon Singleton could be two stars on next year’s team. Shannon Zeno has a little height on him. He’s already confident with shooting the ball and just needs to learn how to dribble. If he can do that, he’ll be a force.”

The Tigers will also return 6-foot-4 Harvey Broussard, a star receiver on the football team who will be a junior next season.