The Pumas Boys Basketball team, who went 6-11 in the regular season, including 3-3 in conference play, entered the playoff gauntlet, which is double elimination.
“I view the tournament differently knowing that we get another chance,” coach James Johnson said.
UPrep suffered a big blow to their playoff chances when they encountered a five-game skid in January. However, they still managed to sneak in with the last seed despite having only played six league games and having accumulated a -201 point differential.
“There were some games that got away then, but we were still able to recover and come together afterwards, which is what matters,” Johnson said.
They played Eastside Prep on Feb 12. Earlier in the year, UPrep lost 38-35 in overtime.
“I had revenge on my mind,” Johnson said.
The Pumas were up 5-2 four minutes into the first quarter, and after a few buckets from Eastside Prep, took back the lead on a basket from senior center Faysal Farah, assisted by junior point guard Sol Starin. The first quarter ended 7-7.
“It was a bit nerve-racking, walking into this one. As a senior, I know every game could be my last, which just motivates me more,” Farah said. The half ended with the Pumas trailing 11-9.
“This game was more defensive than the first time we played. Looking at the scoreboard, it felt like a middle school D3 game out there. We weren’t finishing our shots, and we were getting punished for it,” Johnson said.
Farah finished the game with five points and ten rebounds.
“We wouldn’t have won the game without the boards. I made sure the glass got cleaned up,” Farah said.
UPrep ended the third quarter with a 20-19 lead after a dramatic buzzer-beater.
“I don’t really think about stuff like that. The game’s not over, and it’s just another shot,” Johnson said.
Chaos reigned supreme in the final eight minutes, as the Pumas would accumulate four steals. They led 22-21 with four minutes left before ninth grader Elijah Williams received a full-court pass from Starin and secured another two points.
“His defense has really stepped up over the past few games, and he’s really embraced the point guard role, and what it means to be a ball handler,” Johnson said.
Williams got another steal, and the loose ball was collected by Starin, who sprinted down and bounced it in off the glass.
“I didn’t see it go down,” Williams said. “I fell down and tipped it up and hoped it ended up in Sol’s hands, and he got it done.”
With that, the Pumas were up by five with two minutes left.
“Eastside Prep does a good job messing up the game, and it was great that we were able to switch up our offense and create some chaos as well,” Johnson said.
The Pumas closed out the game with a pair of free throws from Williams and won 29-25.
The Pumas then prepared to play Bear Creek, the second seed in the tournament, two days later.
“We knew that was going to be a really tough opponent for us. We knew we had to score more efficiently, limit turnovers, and play some stingy defense,” Johnson said.
Bear Creek was up 11-8 after the first quarter. The period was highlighted by back-to-back threes by ninth grader Cole Waterman.
“It was a little rough, and we just got gassed real fast,” Williams said. “I was making inexcusable mental errors.”
The Grizzlies opened things up a little more, leading 21-12 at halftime. Midway through the third quarter, Farah ended Bear Creek’s 10-0 run with a wide-open layup.
“I won’t lie. I was watching a little bit of the Cedar Park Christian film before this one. I knew our chances of winning were low, and that was our most likely opponent,” Johnson said.
The Grizzlies led 43-21 at the end of the third quarter. UPrep started a rally with a steal from senior point guard Nicholas Cox-Hultquist, which led to back-to-back threes from Dyon and Eli Williams, followed by a block from ninth grade center Edward Webb.
“Those plays got our bench pumped, which is always nice to see even when we’re in a bad place,” Farah said. Farah finished the game with seven points and eight rebounds.
The Grizzlies were once again significantly helped by star senior wing Max Bieber, who, after this game, became the sixth player in program history to amass 1,000 career points.
The Pumas would end up losing 57-31 and were thrown into the loser’s bracket.
“The fact that the tournament is double elimination means that we have another shot. We have film on Cedar Park, and we know what to expect,” Johnson said.
Overlake beat Cedar Park Christian 60-34 earlier that day, and UPrep will pay Cedar Park Christian a visit on Mon. Feb.17 at 7:00 PM.
“It’s tournament time, so you can’t afford to look too far ahead,” Johnson said. “We have to stay focused on the team in front of us.”
