Lely Slam Dunks Golden Gate, Improves to 11-0

The full Golden Gate gym was buzzing with excitement on Friday afternoon, December 19, when the unbeaten Lely Trojans basketball team unleashed four slam dunks in a four-minute span of the second quarter on their way to an easy 50-22 win over the Titans. Then on Saturday afternoon, the Trojans improved their perfect start to 11-0 with a 68-56 win over Canterbury in the First Baptist Academy gym.

"I was super proud of my seniors for setting the tone,” said coach Fritz Jacques following the Golden Gate game. “We came out and handled business the first half. We allowed two baskets. Great defense. Seven points in the first half. That’s Lely basketball. It's all about the defense. The ball is going to go in the basket some nights. It won't some nights. But that defensive side, I was super proud of them."

And about those four slam dunks. The game’s first dunk was by Jude Mathurin. One Golden Gate’s next possession, Lely stole the ball, leading to a breakaway slam by Branden Baptiste. Minutes later, Mathurin dunked again, followed by Berdley Prophilien’s windmill dunk.

Lely's dominance is born out in the statistics. The Trojans jumped out to a 15-0 lead before Golden Gate scored with :46 left in the first quarter. By halftime, it was 32-7.

Jacques hopes fans will turn out in large numbers to watch his team.

"Oh yeah, man,” Jacques said with a smile. "Yeah, yeah, we're electric, man. We're ready to go. Come watch us. If you haven't seen us play, make sure in the new year you come check us out.”

Lely hosts the Don Stewart shootout on January 9-10. The tournament is named in honor of longtime Lely coach Don Stewart, who was Jacques’ mentor. The two coaches are the winningest in Lely history.