They are best friends that have been teammates since high school, and both attribute family, coaches, community and hard work to the achievement of their dreams.

Fayette natives and Delvin Thompson and Juan Wyatt are both starters for the Alcorn State University Braves basketball team, and are both making a solid impact in their senior seasons.

Both Thompson and Wyatt started playing basketball at a young age.

Thompson, the Braves’ 6’1” starting shooting guard, said he picked up the game at age 12, and by age 14 he said he had a real interest in seeing how far the game of basketball could take him.

Thompson said his eighth grade basketball coach Shelby “Moose” Trevillion got him started playing. “He told me I had talent and motivated me from then on.”

Wyatt said he started playing basketball at age 11. “I was real short then,” he added.

Now the 6’8” forward/center battles opposing teams’ big men in the paint.

He said Jefferson County High School boys’ head basketball coach Marcus Walton and his assistant coach, Vincent Turner, pushed him to get better and helped him with making several key decisions.

While the two seniors have different roles on the team, they both share the same goal of winning the regular season championship, the SWAC Tournament Championship and earning a bid to the NCAA Tournament.

According to both the key to achieving those goals is winning games through hard work.

“We have our minds set on the goals we have made, we just have to work hard to meet them,” Wyatt said.

With the Braves on a six game winning streak after beating rival Jackson State University at home last Saturday, Thompson said the Braves do not need to change a thing.

“We just need to keep playing the way we are playing and continue to work harder,” he said.

As part of a tough work ethic, both try to emulate the play of several professional players to help elevate their own games.

Thompson’s two favorite players are Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns and Allen Iverson of the Denver Nuggets.

“I like Steve Nash because he gets everybody involved and he is a leader. Allen Iverson is a leader too, but he is more of a scorer,” he said.

Wyatt said he keys more into the play of Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs and Kevin Garnett of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“Tim Duncan is a smart player. He knows when to score and how to score.”

“I like the energy Kevin Garnett brings to a game, and the way he goes after everything. He wants it all,” Wyatt said.

Another factor that both accredit their successes to is the support of their families and the Jefferson County community.

“My dad, Lynnell Thompson, taught me to work hard to get what you want, and that has always motivated me a lot,” Thomson said.

“My mom Mary Wyatt, my granddad A.J. Wyatt and my best friend Delvin Thompson have always been there for me. They let me know what’s going on in life, and motivate me to work harder,” Wyatt said.

Off the court the physical education majors share dreams of playing basketball on the next level, but if those dreams are not in the cards, both said they want to coach and teach.

The “dynamic duo,” as Alcorn State head coach Sam West calls them, also dominates another game, Spades.

To pass the time on many long road trips, the two are partners in Spades.

“We are the best Spades players on the team,” Thomson said. He said they are so good that no one on the team will bet them anyone.

Regardless of whatever game they are playing, both said they will take away nothing but positive experiences from their time at Alcorn.

“Playing at Alcorn has been a good experience for me. I have learned a lot from playing here,” Thompson said. “You have to work extra hard,” he added.

“It’s also been a good experience for me. I have learned to give it all I’ve got and a little bit more,” Wyatt said.