Missing their star and recent Lamar-commit Davion Buster, Lanier struggled against a bigger and more talented Westlake team that took home the 89-52 win. Vikings head coach Joseph Pendell declined to comment on the reason for Davion’s absence and also did not give a timeline for his return.  

Junior Keonte Kennedy led Westlake in scoring with 17 and grabbed five boards to go along with three assists.

“I did like that we were able to play everyone in this game,” Westlake head coach Robert Lucero said. “Guys that come into practice and work really hard were able to get into the game. The best thing is when you get to play the guys that don’t start and the intensity doesn’t drop and the level of play doesn’t drop.”

Pendell lamented his team’s lack of size, but was happy with the effort they put forth. He said the goal for the team in games like this is to learn and improve as much as possible.

“We need everybody to be giving their best effort on the court and in the classroom,” Pendell said. “We played as hard as we could have tonight, and I’m very proud of the kids.”  

Leading by 40 at the end of the third quarter, Lucero had the freedom to play just his bench in the fourth quarter. He says it’s important to the team in case of injuries later in the season so the bench isn’t unprepared to play big minutes.

“It’s good because I know the starters believes in us, and we believe in them, so we really gel together well when we get on the court together,” backup point guard senior Kyle Davis said.

Westlake’s big tests come next week after their Saturday showdown against Shoemaker. They’ll travel to Houston next Wednesday to take on No. 7 Katy Tompkins, and later in the week, to Dallas to take on No. 2 Denton Guyer.

Before that, the team is using their first four games to try and prepare for the tougher challenges.

“We’re trying to improve talking on defense and learning to help,” Kyle said. “Basically practicing what we really need to perfect for the upcoming games and just team chemistry — staying positive out there and helping one another.”