Last year, my son’s 5th grade basketball team went undefeated throughout their season, however, they didn’t have playoffs. This year, my son’s 6th basketball grade team went undefeated throughout their season, however this year, there were playoffs. Welcome to the postseason!
The playoffs are a different animal. For all those who watch sports like I do, we know this. But for this team? They blew through the regular season, won a park district tournament, and only had one really close game, winning by 1 point. This team should be able to exercise their will and raise the trophy. But hold on… one of their kids fractures his foot a couple days before the playoffs begin; not good! They should still have enough. In the first round game on Wednesday, it was more of the same. 53-25 final; no sweat. This is what we were used to seeing all year long. The beat goes on. The semifinals were held at a local high school on Saturday afternoon. This game was a bit more competitive. The final score was 46-23. This setup the championship game on Sunday afternoon at another local high school. We had waited for this game the entire season; we would face the team we barely beat by 1 point for all the marbles. Problem is, they didn’t hold up their end of the bargain.
This team lost on Saturday right after our game. Funny thing, their coach was there early, scouting our team; they had penciled this rematch in the second we beat them. I believe they overlooked their semifinals opponent, which just happened to be another team from the same school. They lost 16-15… I couldn’t believe it. Well, now the finals is going to be a cakewalk, right? We beat this team earlier in the year by 20 points. It almost felt like when the Dolphins lost to the Patriots in the AFC Championship game, and the Bears were robbed of a rematch; we know what they did to the poor Patriots in the Super Bowl. Well, that’s why we play the games…
The national anthem ended. Both teams were announced. The jump ball was won by our team, and away we went. We jumped out early with some nice passing and buckets; I mentioned to one of the other dads this could be an early TKO… I couldn’t have been more wrong. This would turn into one of the best games of the season. Our kids looked tight; they looked like they were trying too hard. They were missing shots they normally make; they were making bad passes. They were turning the ball over. We could never achieve separation from this very dangerous underdog. We lead by 6 points at the half. We still had this game.
As the 2nd half started and continued, it was apparent the blow out we all expected wasn’t going to happen; this team wasn’t going anywhere, and we just couldn’t get it going. Yet, our backbone, our trademark, this team’s bread and butter prevailed: the defense. For however bad we were on offense, we were outstanding on defense, like we had been all year long. We were hustling our butts off; loved it! For as frustrating as it was to watch us miss shot after shot, it was very satisfying to see our boys play defense; for an old school basketball head like me, it’s extremely satisfying. Still, the game hung in the balance with under a minute; we had a 3 point lead. I’m all for a good game, and am tired of all the blowouts too, but this was a bit too exciting… haha. They had possession… they got a couple offensive rebounds… they couldn’t make a shot. One of our kids grabbed the rebound, and went to the free throw line with 5 seconds left; all we needed was one. He made the first free throw, and finally, I could take a breath. Our boys won by 4 points, and put the cherry on top of a 19-0 season, winning the league championship trophy. It was awesome!
And my boy… he had a tough game, just like the rest of the boys. After scoring 14 in the first round, and 10 in the semis, he tallied 2 points. We had 0 kids in double figures in the finals; I’d need to check that, but I think this is the first time all season that happened. They were guarding him, preventing the team’s primary ball handler from getting the ball on most inbounds plays. They were running him through pick after pick on defense. He ended up getting elbowed in the face, and had to come out for a few minutes, slapping an ice pack on that bad boy. It was a grinder out there, no doubt. And although there are many things I could tell him, and the team for that matter, the only thing that really matters is that they did it; they won! I only know they’re 11-12 years old, but these kids feel the pressure. Undefeated through 2 years, with everything on the line in this one… playing in a close game, something they weren’t used to. Hey, I give it to them. I’m proud of this team; I couldn’t be more proud of my son. It was really a proud moment for both my wife and I; he was so happy.
I could go on and on about this, bringing you stories from my wife, other parents, family that was in attendance. I could tell you all about our pregame and postgame shows over the past couple years. I could tell you how my son was playing basketball since he started walking. I could tell you how even at a young age, he cared about winning. I could tell you how brutal it would have been if this game went the other way. I don’t know what the future will hold, but I do know this: His team hasn’t lost a game in 2 years. He played in a championship game and his team won. He will always remember this. These are the days.
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