CHAPTER 12
“Coach is right,” Drew said after a moment of silence. “We’re letting the Hornets walk all over us out there.”
“And that’s why we’re losing,” Brandon added, unable to hold it in any longer. “We suddenly have it in our heads that we stink and don’t deserve to be here.”
“We don’t,” Stephen blurted. “Not the way we’ve been playing.”
“That’s not true,” Brandon said. “We deserve to be here more than anyone else does. We fought for the last spot in the play-offs. We survived a bunch of dumb accidents, bad luck, or whatever else you want to call it.”
Brandon looked at the rest of the Clovers. From the looks on their faces, he had their attention. “Guys,” Brandon said, “we trekked through the woods in the dark after our bus broke down just to be here. And for what? To lose?”
“No!” his teammates replied, getting riled up.
“To embarrass ourselves?” Brandon continued. “To call it quits?”
“No!” the Clovers shouted.
“We’re a team!” Brandon hollered. “On the court and off. Through good luck and bad luck. We stick together, and that’s when we’re at our best.”
“He’s right, guys,” Jeff said, standing up next to Brandon. Other players shouted and clapped. Before long, all the players were on their feet.
“We beat the odds to get here,” Brandon said. “Now let’s beat these Hornets!”
The metal lockers echoed with their shouts and cheers, and the Clovers emerged from the locker room as a team once more.
* * *
As the second half got underway, the Hornets didn’t seem to know what hit them. The Clovers came out fighting, and by the end of the third quarter, the Hornets’ lead had been cut down to eight points.
The Clovers played some tough defense. During one break-away, Kevin fired the ball to Brandon, who drove it within firing range. He faked to the hoop and fired it back to the top of the key to Jeff, who sank it for an easy two points.
“Looks like our luck is changing for the better,” Jeff said to Brandon as they hustled down court.
“Forget luck,” Brandon replied, shaking his head. “Just keep playing!”
Halfway through the fourth quarter, the Hornets led by three points and stepped up their game. They seemed to sense their opportunity to beat the Clovers easily was slipping away.
With only minutes left on the clock, Coach Hanson used their last time-out. “Guys,” he said. “I’m glad to see this new energy out there. You’re all playing an incredible game, but we’re running out of time.”
“They’re onto us, Coach,” Tony said. “They’re matching us point for point.”
Coach shrugged. “It’s still your game if you want it. The team who wants it is the one that will advance. The other team goes home.”
The game resumed, and the Hornets moved through the Clovers’ defense like there was nobody guarding the basket. Brandon cringed as he watched the other team’s center go in for an easy lay-up.
And missed.
The ball went wild, bouncing back into the fray. Brandon scooped it up and made a fast break down court to the hoop. For an instant, he flashed back to the shot where he’d wedged the ball against the backboard. Back where his supposed bad luck started.
Not this time, Brandon thought as he went for the lay-up. The ball dropped through the net easily. And just like that, the Clovers were within one point of tying up the game.