By Ben Goldstein
The boysâ varsity basketball teamâs season ended last month in a 84-59 loss to national powerhouse Mater Dei in the second round of the playoffs. The Wolverines finished their season with a 21-8 overall record after going 11-3 in league.
After defeating Westlake 81-49 in the first round Feb. 15, the Wolverines spent the weekend preparing for Mater Dei, a squad ranked second in the nation at the time by USA Today.
âOur expectations were that the undefeated, second ranked team in the nation was going to be pretty good, and they lived up to the billing,â head coach Greg Hilliard said.
Despite the lopsided final score, the team kept things competitive for much of the first half. The Wolverines came within two points of the Monarchs with a score of 19-17 in the second quarter. But Mater Dei then sped off on a 16-2 run and sat on a comfortable lead the rest of the game.
âWe tried everything but could not make it a contest after that,â Hilliard said. Mater Dei went on to the Division II state championship against Archbishop Mitty last Friday.
Despite a repeat of last seasonâs second-round playoff loss to Compton, Hilliard was satisfied with his teamâs season.
âThe team had another very good season with 21 wins versus good competition and solidified its place among the top teams in the southern section,â he said. âBut again it was just not able to beat the top 10 level team.â