Two weeks ago, the Spartans were a mere 8-13 and their hopes for earning a top seed in the playoffs looked bleak. However, after a late surge which saw the Spartans garner two key victories against rivals Howell North and Zumwalt West, the Spartans have momentum as the season nears it’s end.

This past Friday, against Zumwalt West, the Spartans defeated the Jaguars 80-72. Senior forward Derrick Puni had an outstanding game, scoring 37 points, followed by senior guard Ryan Howard with 15 points. The Spartans also played effectively on defense, rebounding 41 shots.

“With the wins at North and West, we have the third seed in Districts,” junior Heriberto Wyatt said.

“Against West, we played great the first three quarters, but we struggled the fourth quarter and they almost came back to win,” Wyatt added.

With the win, the Spartans locked up the third seed in the District tournament next week, despite possessing a 10-13 record. Senior Ryan Howard says that these next two regular season games won’t impact the seeding.

“The seeding is already done, but there are still a couple games left in the season,” Howard said. With the third seed, the Spartans will face Fort Zumwalt South (18-6) in the opening round, and despite their record, Howard is confident they can beat them.

“South is a tough team, but I think we still have a great shot at beating them,” Howard said.

Things have only seemed to get better for the boys basketball team, as the Spartans continued their impressive winning streak yesterday, beating Mehlville (7-15) by a score of 66-56, improving their record to 11-13. Howard and Puni both tied for the team lead with 20 points in the game, followed by junior Tre Curry with 15 points. The Spartans now have a three game winning streak, which is the longest they’ve had all season.

The Spartans final game of the regular season is this Friday at 7 p.m. against Francis Howell at Central. For the seniors, this will be their last time playing their longtime rival Howell on the basketball court.