Finishing in second place of the 4A Winter SPC Championship, the basketball team capped off a phenomenal season with a great record.
Heading into the tournament, they were set as the No. 1 seed and one of the favorites to take the trophy home, due to incredible counter-season performances. However, according to assistant head basketball coach Ryan Brewer, the No. 1 seed doesn’t always equal champions.
“The expectation around the team was we can win the championship, but it was not going to be easy,” Brewer said. “I think the four teams that were in the semis were the best four teams. Us, Houston Christian, EHS and St. John’s, which were all really good teams.”
As the one seed in SPC, heading in the first round, the team was set to play Kinkaid, who were the eighth seed.
“We beat them, but it was kind of a slow game for us,” Brewer said. “After we drove down, it was a tough travel day. Then we stepped on the court, but it was still a blow out pretty much.”
Following their victory against Kinkaid, the team encountered a tough opponent in Houston Christian, where the Lions put on a show and walked away with a hard-fought victory, securing a spot in the championship game.
“On Friday, we played Houston Christian, who’s really good team,” said Brewer. “They have a really good junior point guard. But I think we just played lights out in that game and ended up winning double digits. We jumped on early, and kind of just never looked back, hit some big shots and played really great defense. I want to say we cruised with double digits at half and then kind of just felt that league championship game and great atmosphere.”
After taking down Houston Christian, the team was to play EHS, its toughest match up who also had a strong guard.
“They also had another phenomenal senior guard,” said Brewer. “We started off kind of slow and got down but then made a run to tie it. Then they made another run to kind of take a lead and we were fighting, trying to get back in towards the end, the third and fourth, just could never kind of string anything together. We ended up losing; however, it was a great effort. Second place.”
Looking back, the forming of the bond between the players as well as their talent will provide for a strong base and example for the years to come.
“The camaraderie and the love that the guys have for each other was important,” said Brewer. “There were no selfish players, everything was about the team and how can we make the team better. There was true love for one another on that team and just wanting to see the team succeed.”
