5th Grade White-April 2-3

Facing a CJBA team that had beaten us by 28 the in the last tournament, the boys were excited to get even.  Once again CJBA jumped on us quickly and we struggled with their full court zone press and were down 13 to 4 at the end of 1. Nevertheless a tenacious defensive effort cut the margin to 19-23 at half-Harmon Khela (5 steals) and RJ Billena (6 steals).  Some suspicious officiating and scorekeeping caused a 9 point margin at the end of the third to turn into a 13 point margin before the boys could take the court. Although we lost 31-51, it was a strong effort and the boys learned valuable lessons about sportsmanship.

In the consolation bracket we squared off against the Hornets. Harmon Khela (23 rebounds) and James Crump (6 rebounds) dominated the boards inside and helped us jump out to a 6 point lead in the first half. Leading by 8 points heading into the 4th confidence was high-but our inexperience showed and we panicked against their trapping full court press and an 8 point lead turned into a 37 to 23 loss. The team was led by Captain Harmon Khela’s 9 points, 23 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 Block.

In the final game of the weekend we faced the Red Raiders. Our full court man press helped the boys jump out to an early lead-Shamus Burmeister (4 steals), Noah Slate (4 steals), and RJ Billena (4 steals). Harmon Khela (10 rebounds) and Zack Book (8 rebounds) controlled the boards in the third and we took a 5 point lead into the last quarter. Late turnovers allowed the Red Raiders to tie the game at the end of regulation. In overtime our shots didn’t go and we lost 28-29. The boys learned a valuable lesson about what happens to teams shooting 25% from the free throw line in close games.