When pushed up against the wall, Lions push forward and ravage the competition. Lions like Bird, Magic, Jordan, and Kobe, always pushed forward going after opponents physically and mentally. La Salle’s boys went through a point like this recently in a basketball losing streak, but like the king of the jungle, they persevered and overcame the presented challenges.

“What we really changed was our attitude towards coming in a game. Working harder on defense and our offense didn’t change much. We just attacked the basket more and got more aggressive on the rim,” said senior Chris Perez.

Coaches Eric De La Grana and Deandre Mickens temporarily lost some players like sophomores Tyler Monzo, Ivo Raggio and senior Giorgio Saumat, but they didn’t change their formula. It was just a matter of mindset and attitude. When you lose players in any team, players have to adjust which can be really hard for even the pros. It was just a matter of wanting it more than the other team. The boys knew they wanted it more, and just outplayed Mast for originally starting the streak.

“Centers had to toughen up and guards too had pick up slack and play harder,” said sophomore La’Varis Stanford.

COVID is less of an obstacle this year, and they have opportunities this year that last year were unseen. That obstacle makes you hungry and driven to actually go harder next season. This year they have the opportunity to reach the State Championships which they are confident about  despite the losing streak.

It took a lot of hard work to get back into the winning mentality, and like every sport you get comfortable with who you are and relax. Confident and swag is what these boys show, but all that really matters is they’re back on track and focused on their high goals.

“Honestly, our lack of hard work, and not doing little things correctly, or paying attention to detail… we are poised to Districts and hopefully the momentum carries over,” stated Saumat.