FARMINGTON -- Layne Taylor is used to following his father's instructions, but felt odd asked to step out to center court Friday.
His father, Farmington head boys basketball coach Johnny Taylor, didn't tell him why he was being sent to the scorer's table at halftime of Friday's girls basketball game between the Lady Cardinals and Prairie Grove.
His dad overheard him telling his teammates, "I think they're doing some other awards ceremony tonight."
Girls' basketball star Jenna Lawrence had already been honored for being nominated as a McDonald's High School All-American along with receiving a basketball commemorating the 2,000 points she's scored in a career at Melbourne and Farmington.
The ploy worked, making Layne Taylor overlook his own 2,000 points so when the guys at the scorer's table told him to step out to center court the junior prolific scorer started to feel uncomfortable.
"I thought Jenna was getting another award because she had gotten the McDonald's All-American thing and a 2,000 [career points ball] as well, and so my dad told me to walk over here and I had no idea what was going on. Then they told me to walk out to center court and I was kind of embarrassed because I thought they were messing with me," Layne Taylor said.
The next thing he knew, a basketball recognizing the 2,000 points he's scored with his own hands was delivered to Layne Taylor and he relaxed.
"It's really gratifying and humbling and it's really nice to do it at Farmington with great teammates in a great community. They make it fun. It's flown by, I don't feel like I've scored 2,000 points. I still feel like I'm still a ninth grader just starting, but it's been a lot of fun," Layne Taylor said.
His parents, including father, Johnny Taylor, head boys basketball coach, and mother, Morgan Taylor, concealed the fact that Layne had achieved the 2,000 point career milestone because they wanted to surprise him in front of the home crowd.
"They told me I had to go over there [to the scorer's table] because there was some other fan. I didn't know what was going on and then they brought the ball out to me. It was really exciting," Layne Taylor said.
The new basketball was take a place of prominence in the Taylor household.
"I already have my 1,000 point ball. It looks just like this one. It's on a little stand in front of my TV so I'll have another one in my room as well. It will be really cool to see two of them," Layne Taylor said.
Asked to describe one of the hardest baskets he's worked to get this season, Layne Taylor rehashed a successful in-bounds play against Gravette.
"We were throwing it on the side and I had two guys guarding me and I just caught it and shot it. That was a pretty tough deal," Layne Taylor said. "That was a good pass, Jaeden Newsom threw it perfect so I was able to knock it down."
Johnny Taylor rejoices twice over the feat, once as a dad and again as a coach. He's coached Layne since kindergarten and recalled he once scored 58 points in an "Upward Basketball" game. The organizers put a green tag on Layne and a green tag on the defender and wouldn't allow help.
"His teammates just kept finding him and I think that just kind of just sums up Layne. He's been blessed to play with really good teammates. If he gets hot or he gets going, they find him, and that's probably our biggest blessing. We have such good kids here. For him, it's not just the basketball experience, Layne loves his teachers here, he loves the administration. We're just really, really fortuante," Johnny Taylor said. "I'm happy for Layne because I know how much effort he puts into it and how much time he spends on his own here working," Johnny Taylor said.
Jenna Lawrence 2,000 Points
Lawrence received a bouquet of roses presented by a McDonald's representative when she was recognized as a McDonald's High School All-American nominee prior to Friday's rivalry game against Prairie Grove. Lawrence was also presented with a basketball commemorating the 2,000 points she's scored during her career with two seasons at Melbourne before transferring to Farmington.
"I'm blessed to be able to play on both of my teams. My teammates were amazing at Melbourne. They would pass me the ball and we had an amazing connection, and then here my coaches and teammates just let me do whatever I want. They give me the ball, they give me plays to run and I can pretty much score at will," Lawrence said.
Looking back on her journey, she describes the experience with both teams and being able to score consistently as an incredible ride.
Johnny Taylor said Farmington fans rooted equally for both 2,000 point scorers.
"We feel super blessed and fortunate to be at a place like Farmington where all of our kids and all of our sports programs support each other. Everybody was proud of Layne, everybody was proud of Jenna," said Johnny Taylor. "Jenna and Layne, what impresses me so much with them is that they're such good people off the court and great teammates. You can say that about both of them, probably there's not anybody in the school who says, 'I don't like Jenna or I don't like Layne,' just because they're humble and they're hard-working."
Brad Johnson 400 Wins
Farmington head girls basketball coach Brad Johnson was honored during a Jan. 13, 2023, Colors Day 56-37 win over Gentry in 4A-1 Conference action. On Dec. 29, 2022, Johnson achieved the 400th win of his career that includes a couple stints coaching boys in Arkansas high school basketball.
Mark Humphrey/Enteprise-Leader Farmington senior Jenna Lawrence received a bouquet of roses presented by a McDonald's representative when she was recognized as a McDonald's High School All-American nominee prior to Friday's rivalry game against Prairie Grove. Lawrence was also presented with a basketball commemorating the 2,000 points she's scored during her career with two seasons at Melbourne before transferring to Farmington.
Mark Humphrey/Enterprise-Leader Farmington junior Layne Taylor was awarded a commemorative basketball, signifying the 2,000 points he's scored in his high school career at Farmington, at halftime of the girls game between Farmington and Prairie Grove on Friday. Taylor added 17 more points to his total in the boys game with Farmington beating the Tigers, 84-28, to maintain first place in the 4A-1 Conference boys standings.