Must-win games familiar territory for Central Valley boys
It was Monday afternoon and, for the first time in what must have felt like weeks, the Central Valley Bears weren’t staring a loser-out boys basketball game in the face.
The team was spread out across the CV main gym, happily working on free throws while the PA system blared rock music so old it was originally issued on vinyl and was probably considered an “oldie but a goodie” when the players parents first discovered it.
“I feel all right, mamma, I’m not jokin’,” the lyric entreats.
“Oh, we need that kind of music!” senior Max Sykes says with gusto. “My dad is old school and I’ve grown up with that kind of stuff!”
The lyric fits the CV attitude.
“Pick you up and take you away-ay.”
Central Valley takes on Moses Lake on Friday night at Mt. Spokane High School in what used to be a first-round state tournament game. Now it’s considered a Regional game, with the winner advancing to the state tournament and the loser turning its attention to spring sports.
“We’re not really thinking about that right now,” Sykes said. “This team has a different approach – different from what previous teams have had.
“We did not set goals for the end of our season. Instead we just have one goal: to get better each and every day. We’re focused on making ourselves better today and we’ll be the same way tomorrow.”
“It’s kind of a new experience,” senior Michael Hannan said. “We have a thing we say – we play for us. Play for each other. It’s all about US. We love each other and we’ve all grown so close over the years.”
One day at a time has worked for Central Valley.
The program was senior-dominated a year ago and there were no returning starters coming back as standard bearers.
“In some ways, I think this senior class – me, Michael and Parker Bowden – feels a little overlooked,” Sykes said. “We had a big senior class last year and we have a strong class behind us – our JV went undefeated, 20-0 this year. It’s kind of felt like we’re the class in between.”
There’s a sense of urgency about a season that suddenly hits a player when they’re a senior and realize that their next game could well be their last.
“That really hit home for us,” Hannan said. “We love the game and never want it to end. To finally get our time is really nice and we never want to let it end.”
It took a while for the lineup to solidify because it took the coach time to realize that his son – junior Tanner Sloan – was the missing piece.
“I wanted to make sure there was never a question about (Tanner) being in the starting lineup,” coach Rick Sloan said. “I probably made it harder for him and I think maybe other coaches saw it before I did, that he needed to be out there.”
“We needed him, for sure,” Sykes said. “He’s our best shooter, and having him out there opens things up for everyone else.”
The Bears finished 16-4 in the regular season, but a two-point loss forced the team to face a string of loser-out games: Lewis and Clark (a 58-57 win) at Chiawana (a 73-61 win), University (a 55-53 win) and Mead (a 54-51 win).
It’s as if the situation, win or go home, dovetailed nicely with the Central Valley mindset.
“I think it did,” Hannan said. “I don’t want to say that we were comfortable playing with our backs to the wall, but it wasn’t something that was uncomfortable, because we’re already playing one day at a time.
“We want to get to Tacoma and play in the dome. We want to take this great junior class we have with us and get them that kind of experience so they can build on it next year. We want to make a statement.”
Sykes agreed.
“There are so many guys on this team that put in the hard work every day in practice that don’t get the kind of game credit that they deserve,” he said. “Eli Emerson has worked so hard and really stepped his game up to help make the rest of us better. Josh Thomas and Marty Munyon, Parker Bowden and Landon Daines.
“They all deserve so much credit for the hard work they’ve put in this year. We want to take them to the dome and shake things up.”
“Pick you up and take you away-ay.”