JV stays undefeated through first round of District play

We all know about the rivalry between Westlake and Lake Travis on the football field, but in recent years, the games have actually been much more tightly contested on the basketball court. Just before varsity’s highly anticipated showdown with Lake Travis on Jan. 6, the JV boys’ game offered a taste of the intense atmosphere that was to follow.

The usual calm before the storm that is the JV boys’ basketball game offered plenty of excitement. It was a matchup between two teams that are almost always near or at the top of the District standings. Both teams played tough defense, as most of the scoring was at a premium for each team. Eventually, starting point guard sophomore Jackson Arnette was able to navigate through the tough defense and score himself and also found teammates for easy baskets.

“Neither team could get a big lead or very much momentum,” Jackson said.

Center sophomore Robert Rousseau explained that the Chaps “were down for most of the game” before coming back from the deficit in the fourth quarter.The game was very close and ended up coming down to the final seconds. Westlake drew up a play for shooting guard sophomore Rhett Kelley, and he was able to make a game-winning jump shot to beat the Cavaliers on their own floor with just a few seconds remaining.

“The clock was running down and the options were limited, so I made a move to some open space and hit the shot,” Rhett said.

Power forward sophomore Carson Van Winkle described that he watched the shot and “thought Rhett was going to miss it, but he swished it.” Despite not making a clutch shot a little earlier in the game, Rhett stepped up to the plate when it counted most and delivered a one-point victory, 39-38 in what was a low scoring game throughout.

The JV boys team now sits at 18-2, with its only losses coming to Lake Travis two months earlier in the season, and on the final night of January. The JV Chaps have actually been more successful than the boys varsity team, record-wise. They are primed to win the District championship if they can keep up their high level of play, which means winning their three remaining contests. Their next game is at 6 p.m. Feb. 7th at Lehman.