NELSON WARRIORS ARE WEST REGIONAL CHAMPIONS

The Nelson Warriors' Men's Basketball team captured the SWS West Regional Championship in dramatic, heart-pounding fashion on Saturday night, defeating the Justice Lions 81-80 before an overflow crowd at Scott Activity Center in Phoenix, AZ, that included dozens of Justice faithful standing strongly behind the Lions bench.

The tension was palpable from the opening tip. Both teams came out tight, grinding through a halting, low-scoring start. Nelson's shooting was ice-cold early, missing crucial free throws and field goals alike. It took nearly ten minutes for the Warriors to crack double digits, doing so on an Orlando Gonzales three-pointer that pulled them within four, while Justice slowly built a lead to 30-20 with 4:35 left in the first half.

That's when the game ignited. Emotions ran high on both sides, little emotional eruptions-ups bubbled up, tempers flared, and the physicality turned the contest into a basket-brawl. A Justice flagrant foul followed by offsetting flagrants by Orlando Gonzales and JD Walker became the spark: Nelson turned the moment into a 10-0 run that tied the game at 30. Suddenly with renewed energy, the two teams wrestled towards halftime with Justice clinging to a scant six-point lead, 36-30.

Whatever coach Kole Ebert shared with his men at halftime created a spark that turned into a flame which the Lions could not shut off. The second half opened like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon – Nelson's shooting suddenly found life. After falling to 28% shooting from the field, like the bow-master sharpshooters of old, the Warriors found and nailed their target with incredible efficiency, shooting 52.5% from the field in the second half. Highlighted by Wyatt Mackay, who nailed back-to-back floaters within a 90 second stretch, the Warriors pulled back to within two. Nelson finally regained the lead at 60-59 with 10:03 remaining—their first advantage since 6-4 early in the first half.

From there, the game became a classic heavyweight slugfest: Warriors and Lions trading punches, jabs, haymakers, and uppercuts in a relentless back-and-forth bout where neither team could give the knockout punch, and the game's ending was not meant for those who struggle with such intensity.

The score see-sawed: Nelson up three, Justice tying it. Nelson up three again, Justice retaking the lead at 74-73 with 4:24 left. Nelson answered to go back up three with 3:10 to go, only for Justice to nip ahead again at 80-79 with 43 seconds remaining.

Then, with the season, and a shot at the NCCAA National Championship tournament on the line, Conference MVP Zoe Holman took the ball. Surveying the court, he drove from the top of the key into the lane, rose through heavy traffic, and finished an acrobatic, highly contested layup that only he could convert, putting Nelson up 81-80 with 17.9 seconds left.

Justice, inexplicably having used up their precious timeouts long before, raced the ball up. Ray King caught it beyond the arc, lowered his shoulder, and drove hard toward the rim. At the free-throw line, he hopped for the game-winner – but with the speed and instincts of a gazelle, Holman reached into the grip of the Lion, popped the ball loose, sending it floating into the air. The ball bounced between hands as the last seconds of the season ticked away into oblivion. With one second left, JD Walker snatched it, found a sliver of space left of the free-throw line, set his feet, and launched a clean look – the ball kissed the inside of the rim…bounced once…twice…and rimmed out just as the buzzer sounded.

Euphoria. The Scott Activity Center erupted. Players rushed the court in pure jubilation. Teammates mobbed Holman. Seniors Orlando Gonzales and Terrin Ross lifted each other in celebration. The Warriors faithful roared as one.

Nelson 81, Justice 80. The West Regional Championship belongs to the Warriors.

On to the NCCAA National Tournament in Missouri.

When the team was cold, Wyatt Mackay was not. Shooting a blistering 10-15 from the field, he finished with a team-high 23 points along with 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. Inching closer to 1,000 career points, Terrin Ross struggled to find the bottom of the net early on, then in once stretch early in the second half, roared to life, finishing with 17 points on 7-13 from the field, while snagging 10 boards and dishing 2 assists, one exceptional no look pass with his back to the basket to Calvin Windley for an easy layup. Calvin finished with 16 points on 7-13 from the field, to go along with 7 rebounds. Orlando Gonzales and Zoe Holman each shot 3-12 from the field (for 9 and 7 points, respectively), but each contributing in ways only they could. Orlando still managed to drain two 3's early in the game keeping his team within striking distance, while Zoe played all 40 minutes, dishing out 7 assists, recorded 3 steals, 2 blocks, and made both the game-winner and game-saving defensive play. Jermaine Earnest tied Zoe for the game-high with steals at 3, while Chase Pavey's only recorded statistic was a dagger 3, although his defensive energy was critical to his team's ability to be in position to win.

The Lions were led in scoring by Moses Demalek who finished with 24 points, 10 caroms snagged, 4 assists, and 2 steals, while Ray King finished with 20 points and 6 rebounds.

The journey continues. The National Tournament awaits. And these Warriors are ready.