January 30-February 2

The regular Monday morning lunch visit to the mall started the week. on Tuesday evening we were at McCaskey for a very unusual night of basketball. Warwick was the opponent, when I arrived I was informed that several of our players were going to be absent for various reasons (make of that what you will), as a result JV head coach Mike Mitchell had only five players available for his game. Varsity reserve Ramon Garcia was added as a sixth body, the JV squad battled with what they had but it wasn't enough to avoid their second loss within the league and third overall. The varsity was similarly shorthanded, with only six players available Coach Powell added the four JV players who weren't already on the varsity roster to the lineup. It all sounded like a recipe for disaster (especially the way this season has gone) but on this night we were treated to a remarkably spirited effort. They say chemistry plays a big role in any team's success, on this occasion for whatever reason it could not have been better. The game was tied at halftime, in the third quarter we built an eight-point lead and took it home from there 81-71. William Joseph scored a career-high 31, Jathan Gonzalez added a career-best 24 and Isiah Speller had 13 to round out the double-figures club. Three of the four JV players added got into the game, Ajani Simmons scored his first varsity point by making one-of-two at the foul line. The heartwarming (under the circumstances) victory improves the record to 6-6 within league play and 7-11 overall, the boys finish their home schedule on Friday the 3rd. Wednesday and Thursday were largely uneventful except for lunch with Jenny on Wednesday, that is always a highlight no matter what else happens. Take care, thanks for reading.