Titans hoops season ends at districts

“The peaks were great, the valleys were tough”

You could look to the first quarter of the Titans district game against Del Norte on Friday, February 25, the quarter the Titans were held scoreless, and say that was the end of their season. But, it actually goes back three days prior to that game.
The Titans mounted a monumental comeback last week against Sangre de Cristo to force overtime.
Down 20 points with five minutes left, the Titans turned red hot from three-point range while their defense forced numerous turnovers and they chipped away at the lead, tying it up in the last four seconds to force overtime.
Unfortunately, they came up short during extended play, losing by one point in overtime.
The loss sent them to the consolation bracket of the district tournament and the season was by no means over. Yet coach Robin Loyed noticed a change in his team.
The team put the physical energy into the practices leading up to their next challenge against Del Norte on Friday, but the mental aspect was missing.
“It sort of felt like that loss to Sangre took the wind out of our sails,” says Loyed. “It just seemed like we were not as confident as we had been in the past.”
To make matters worse, the Titans were looking forward to the return of sophomore guard Jesse Reeves to the line-up for the playoff run. But his broken thumb was still bothering him and Loyed did not feel Reeves was ready to return to action.
Now, when it comes to the post-season, confidence is everything. That lack of confidence reared its ugly head against Del Norte, primarily on offense.
The Titans were held scoreless in the first quarter, falling behind 15-0 as turnovers and poor shooting plagued them. Loyed looked to his entire bench for someone to spark some offense.
“I did everything I could do to get these guys in it,” says Loyed. “By the end of the first quarter, I had played everyone.”
The game continued to unravel for the Titans in the second quarter, falling behind 21-0 before sophomore Ryan Costello scored the Titans’ first two points.
From there, things started to click. Sparked by tough defense, the Titans charged on a 10-0 scoring run but Del Norte had the final say of the half. As time was running out, a Del Norte player drained a prayer shot from half court at the buzzer, leaving the Titans down 24-10 at halftime.
“That was the third time that happened to us this season,” says Loyed. “I think the guys felt like they were snake-bit.”
The Titans played near even basketball with Del Norte through the second half, but they were forced to look for another comeback miracle from three-point land—but the shots just weren’t falling.
The Titans finished the game shooting eight for 32 from inside the three-point arc, two for 10 from the land of three.
“You can’t come back when you’re shooting like that,” says Loyed.
Del Norte ultimately finished off the Titans 46-30, putting an end to the Titans’ season.
“Del Norte didn’t do anything special,” explains Loyed. “They just played solid basketball. It came down to patience, execution and shot selection.”
Junior Anton Peck led the Titans with nine points and four steals. Seniors Jake Grogg, Henry Linehan and Max Molitor finished the game with four points each.
While the Titans fizzled at the end of the season seemingly falling short of their pre-season set of goals, Loyed is proud of the teams’ effort the entire season.
One half of one game in particular stands out for Loyed: the comeback against Sangre de Cristo.
“I’m more proud than anything of the second-half comeback against Sangre,” says Loyed. “That was one of the best halves I’ve ever seen from a Titans team. The peaks were great, the valleys were tough. But the guys never quit.”