School & Community News

1976 basketball book on Tigers

A Vermilion County man has brought to life the stories that surrounded the 1976 Westville High School basketball team as it nearly reached the ultimate prize: winning the Illinois Class A tournament. Westville native James E. Bryant has spent the last seven years putting together interviews, old pictures and even film clips of the amazing ’76 Tigers’ season for his book, “Remember Westville”. Bryant says even though the 1976 team did not win the state championship, it remains special to many people in Vermilion County, especially Westville fans. “I grew up in this town,” Bryant says, “And while football has always been important to Westville fans, this town just fell in love with the ’76 basketball team.” Bryant’s book takes readers onto the playgrounds as team members are growing up, into the locker rooms they shared in high school, and onto the basketball courts of Vermilion County. The book gives an inside look at how a team comes together, the joys and frustrations they share, the coach that guides them through the season, and the fans who shared every moment with them. Bryant says he did not just want to write a ‘sports’ book. “I wanted this book to be about the town, the team, and the fans,” Bryant says. “There have been lots of great Vermilion County basketball teams over the years, but this one was really special to Westville,” he says. The 358 page book sells for $23.95 and is available through Bryant’s website www.rememberwestville.com Bryant’s book has received exc