Brahmans Ready for Post Season

     Okeechobee basketball finished sixth in the Treasure Lake Conference this year but they hope to finish first or second in their district and secure a state playoff berth for the first time in four years.
Okeechobee wrapped up the regular season with a loss to Fort Pierce Central in the Treasure Lake Playoff, and then survived a terrible first half to defeat St. Edwards, 47-34 on Senior night. The Brahmans finished the regular season at 15-9, their first winning season since 1996.
Tuesday’s game with Ft. Pierce Central was a tough and physical one. Okeechobee fell behind 21-9 early and really could never get their footing against a talent Cobra’s team.
Justin Wilkins scored three buckets down the stretch that kept the Cobras in the lead. They ended up winning, 65-52, which turns out to be the Brahman’s worst home loss of the year. They lost only two games at home this year.
“We have to make up things around the basket, go up strong, make free throws and finish around the basket to build up our lead and make sure we weren’t caught at the end,” Wilkins noted.
The Brahmans played both games last week shorthanded. Point guard Kelsey Spencer continues to battle injuries. Shooting guard Devon Faison was out of school due to a bad flu, and even missed senior night. The team also lost James Shanks a few weeks ago.
Coach Enrico said Fort Pierce is a good team but that his team came out flat. He noted it’s late in the year and the Treasure Lake Conference game didn’t really mean much to his team.
“It would have been our eighth win in a row so we had something to play for but this didn’t mean much, the conference does nothing for us and we don’t do anything for them,” he noted.
Jordan Jones had 14 points and six assists for Okeechobee. David Jeune had eight points and 15 boards for Okeechobee.
“I was impressed that we fought back but you just can’t get behind that much against a good team,” Enrico noted.
Thursday against St. Edwards the boys played one of their worst half’s of basketball in recent memory. They were held to four points in both the first and second quarters, and went to the break trailing 11-8. Only St. Edward’s ineptitude on the offensive end kept the Brahmans in the game in the first half.
The team shot just 4-26 in the first half. St. Edwards didn’t shoot much better.
The sleep walking continued until midway in the third when St. Edward’s built an 18-12 lead on a lay up inside. Okeechobee went on a 10-0 run to take a 22-18 lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.
“Senior night is emotional an we’re pretty thin and hurting right now,” Brahman Coach Jon Enrico noted, “I think we just not focused, it’s been a long season and were not getting into the gym enough. We can’t play like that in districts. Were a team that must shoot the three, rebound hard, and persevere.”
Omar Santibanez, who started along with Stephen Hirst on Senior night, had five rebounds, and three assists. He also provided some top notch defense and hustle.
“Coach said to step it up on defense and that is what we did. We were just jacking up shots in the first half. I decided that I would do some of the dirty work to try and get us going. I was glad I contributed to the team.”
Okeechobee built a 24-18 lead after three and then outscored St. Edwards 23-16 in the fourth quarter. Lashawn Henderson scored 17 points in the second half to lead the way. Tim Williams, 12 points and six boards, was also solid inside and got the team going emotionally after the break. Jeune chipped in with eight points and 15 rebounds.
Enrico said Henderson will be important for the team in the post season. He missed his first 12 shots against St. Edwards, but then hit 8-11 in the second half.
He also was impressed with Santibanez and how he played on defense.
“If I’m not shooting well I’ll be out there scrapping and getting assists. I can be an important part of the team,” he noted.
With the lack of depth on this team, it looks like Omar will have his chance to do that in the district tournament.
Okeechobee drew Westwood in the first round on Monday night. If successful they were to play the winner of the Glades Central and Suncoast game on Wednesday night at 5:30 p.m. If successful again they would reach the district final on Saturday at 7 p.m. All of the games will be played at Jensen Beach High School.

Girls Basketball Loses in District Semifinals

Despite a poor performance in their final game, Okeechobee girl’s basketball had a lot to be proud of this year. They had a winning record for the first time in three years, and they also learned a new system under young Coach Nathan Owen.
Despite a 56-14 loss in the district semifinals to the Falcons last week, Okeechobee still looks to be headed in the right direction.
The girls won a thrilling game over Glades Central, 62-55, in the first round to reach the semifinals. Tierra Allen had a season high 31 points and Monica Koger had a career high 26 points in that victory. Sheena Hightower had 23 points to lead Glades Central.
Owen got the girls to focus more of their energy on defense this year and it proved to be good advice. He loses Allen to graduation but will have a solid nucleus of players returning next year as he tries to build a program in Okeechobee.
Okeechobee had a seven game winning streak as well this year. They finished the year with a winning record, (13-10).
Jensen Beach went on to win the championship in another blowout. The (22-4) Falcons defeated Suncoast 52-26. Okeechobee was competitive with every other team in their district this year.