MICHAEL KIRAL / L’Observateur / March 22, 2000

“We got an invitation to the dance and we danced a lot.”Those were the words of West St. John’s Jeremy Lumar after the Rams’84-71 victory over Coushatta in the Class 2A championship game Friday night. And they were appropriate because West St. John and St. Jamesturned the Top 28 Tournament in Lafayette into a River Parishes two-step this weekend.

Step one occurred Friday night when West St. John faced off againstCoushatta. With the score tied at 66 with 2:08 to play, West St. John coachAntoine Edwards challenged his players to look inside themselves and find what it takes to be champions.

The Rams stepped up to that challenge, outscoring the Choctaws 18-5 the rest of the way. And they did it with two old-fashioned ingredients -defense and free throws. In those final two minutes, West St. John causedfour straight turnovers and made 10 of their 12 free throws.

St. James completed the dance Saturday night against St. Bernard in theClass 3A title game. The Wildcats overcame numerous comebacks by theEagles, including a late one that put St. Bernard ahead, 64-63 with 23seconds left. But St. James did not panic as team captain Corey Websterfound Stevenson Jones along the right baseline for the layup that put the Wildcats ahead with 13 seconds left.

But the biggest play may have been one on the defensive end. With theEagles quickly taking the ball downcourt, Joseph Christy cut St. Bernard’sDrionne Major along the right baseline and took a charge, giving the Wildcats possession with five seconds left. St. Bernard would get onemore shot but Lance Brown’s runner at the buzzer went off the backboard.

It was the little things like Christy taking the charge that got both the Wildcats and Rams district titles and advanced them to the Top 28 Tournament this season. And because they continued to do those littlethings once they got to Lafayette that today both can be called champions.

About the only thing harder than beating those teams over the last week was getting the players to talk about their contributions to the championships. Team and teammates were the words most commonlyheard in interviews. Webster and Jeremy Lumar were named theOutstanding Players in Class 3A and 2A, respectively. Both were willing tosay that would not have been possible without their teammates.

St. James and West St. John were two of the most enjoyable teams towatch at the tournament last week. Both seemed to thoroughly enjoy theirstay in Lafayette. And when the final seconds clicked down in theirrespective championship games, that exuberance came out in one memorable celebration scene after another.

Credit should go to head coaches Lionel Ezidore of St. James and Edwardsof West St. John as well as the coaching staffs for both teams for keepingthe players motivated through a long, tiring season. Both teams hadplayers come straight from the football field to the basketball court in December but both squads continued to play their hardest right down to the final seconds of the season.

West St. John’s Donriel Louis noted that the players fed off theenergy of their fans. And a number of supporters from both teams madethe trip to the Cajun Dome to continue to cheer on their teams. They tooshould be commended.

Also to be commended are the organizers and workers who put on the Top 28 Tournament. It was indeed a first-class operation. The basketball wasexceptional all week, among the best anywhere in the country. And withthe Rams and Wildcats, along with Reserve Christian, the River Parishes were well represented in Lafayette.

Congratulations, champions, and welcome home.

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