Marbury's William Turner Named Autauga County Basketball Coach of the Year

William Turner arrived at Marbury High School in 2023 with a program that had reached the area tournament finals just eight times in 30 years and owned a 1-7 record in sub-regional games. Two seasons later, he has a county Coach of the Year award and a piece of school history to go with it.

The Marbury Bulldogs won the Class 5A Area 6 championship and advanced to the Class 5A Elite 8 for the first time in school history. Based on that successful season, the Elmore-Autauga News named Turner the Autauga County Basketball Coach of the Year.

The road to that milestone was far from linear. "Even when we started the 2025 portion of our season 7-8, I was not the least bit concerned," Turner said. "We went on a 15-3 run in the 2026 half of our season to finish 22-11."

The turnaround began in earnest in early January with a trio of blowouts: Marbury beat Autauga Academy 72-39, defeated BTW Magnet 79-19, and followed that with a 40-point dismantling of Billingsley.

"We had a lot of things really start clicking toward the end of the season. Our shots were falling, and our defense was playing really well. We played fast, but under control, and from day one the team bought into our goals and potential for this season," Turner said.

Three players powered Marbury's run statistically. Junior Noah Trotter led the Bulldogs in scoring, averaging 16.1 points per game. Junior Jamar Brown averaged 11 points per game along with 3.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 2.3 steals, while sophomore Jalen Hall contributed 10.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per game, adding 1.6 steals and 1.2 blocks.

The postseason run produced two more history-making moments. Marbury defeated Valley 83-66 in the sub-regional round on February 14, then defeated Central-Clay County 66-53 in the 5A Central Regional semifinals at Alabama State's Dunn-Oliver Acadome. The run ended February 24 when the Bulldogs lost to Sylacauga 40-70 in the Elite 8.

After guiding Marbury to the regional championship game for the first time, Turner reflected on what the run meant to the community. "It's hard to put into words how it feels to lead Marbury to the Elite Eight. Proud doesn't begin to describe it. Just humbled by all the blessings God has bestowed upon me and this great group of young men. We love this community and want to make them proud of the product that we put out on the floor. We realize no one expected us to be in this position and that's what makes it fun," Turner said.

When Turner arrived in 2023-24, he inherited a program that had reached the area tournament finals just eight times under the format adopted 30 years prior and was 1-7 in sub-regional games. The award reflects how decisively that trajectory has changed.

The team that reached the Elite 8 will return all five starters and the first two players off the bench, a fact that ensures Turner and Marbury will carry a target into next season, and a reasonable expectation of competing for more county hardware when it ends.