Westside basketball looks to end season on a high note

The No.7 Westside varsity boys basketball team took on the No. 6 Lincoln East Spartans in a top 10 matchup on Tuesday, Feb.7. The Warriors were hoping to finish the regular season on a high note.

The game started off decently for the Warriors as they found themselves in the lead at the end of the first quarter by a score of 16-15.  But as the game went on the Spartans got better as they erased their deficit and led at half 35-26. In the following quarters East would hold their lead and capitalize off of poor Westside shooting. The final was Lincoln East 66 and Westside 50. Lincoln East’s Jared Townsley scored 20 points to help propel his team to a huge road win.

One of the bright spots for Westside was Kevin Stubblefield, who led all scorers with 26 points. The junior forward said the Warriors struggled at the start of the game. 

“The game was really decided on how we played and I think that we didn’t come out with the intensity we needed to win the game,” said Stubblefield. “Whether it’s guarding the ball or even being together as a team.”

The Warriors have recently found themselves in a shooting slump from outside the arc and it is especially shown when competing against the higher competition in the state. Westside failed to convert a three-pointer against the Spartans and finished 0-16 from behind the arc. The Warriors look to continue improving on that so the issue is solved by the end of the year tournaments. Head Coach Jim Simons knows the shooting problems have to change.

“We struggled shooting the ball from the perimeter against Lincoln East,” Simons said. “We were able to create a lot of good shots, shots that our players normally make, but the ball didn’t go in the basket for us. We have several quality opponents coming up over the next 10 days and our focus continues to be working daily to improve our team and to max out at the district tournament.  Basketball is a tournament sport and we want to be playing our best when the postseason tournament starts in a couple of weeks.  If we continue to work hard and have a great attitude, we think our best is still to come.”

The Warriors bounced back with wins over Omaha Bryan and Salt Lake Academy last weekend to improve their record to 15-6. Westside hosts Millard West on Tuesday, Feb.14.