By Raymond Partsch III
The Kinder boys basketball team just keeps on winning.
With Friday’s 62-59 overtime victory at Oakdale, Kinder has won five straight games and is 3-0 in District 5-2A play.
“Winning always feels good!,” Kinder boys coach Josh Fontenot said. “I’m happiest about the effort and attitudes they are putting forth each game. Five in a row doesn’t mean a great deal in basketball terms honestly. The goal is that it means a ton to the boys in the long run. That staying focused, staying positive, and working hard pays off. “
The latest victory may have been the most challenging.
Kinder (12-11, 3-0) found itself trailing by four with 1:10 left in regulation. That’s when the Yellow Jackets made the winning plays.
Kingston Fontenot stole an inbounds pass and LyTruss Guidry finished the play with a bucket and free throw. Kinder then fouled which put Oakdale at the charity stripe. The Warriors made one of two free throws and held a two-point lead. Michael Langley’s bucket tied the game up and forced overtime.
The Yellow Jackets pulled away in the extra period, as Fontenot hit a three-pointer and Guidry scored three points in overtime.
Did Kinder do anything different to pull out the win compared to the other four games they were victorious in? Not really.
“We played very hard which is why we pulled out the win,” Fontenot said. “We got in a little trouble when our best rebounder (Michael Langley) got into foul trouble early. Paxton gave us some great minutes playing great defense and crashing the boards. “
After opening up the season dropping four straight games, and six of their first seven, Kinder is above .500 and playing their best basketball.
That includes an undefeated start to district play with victories over Port Barre (41-34), Rapides (45-37), and now Oakdale.
“They are believing they can win and now they are learning how to win,” Fontenot said.
The Kinder girls basketball team meanwhile snapped their two-game losing skid with a 62-55 win over Lacassine on Monday.
For Kinder coach Taylor Breaux, it was great to see her girls overcome a few losses to earn the hard-fought win.
“It was absolutely great,” Breaux said. “We broke down film from last week hard and the girls grapsed what our issues were from those two losses and fixed them.”
To get back on track, Breaux and her coaching staff pushed the team to be better with tough practices and intense film sessions.
“So proud of them,” Breaux said. “I have a team full of coachable kids and kids that want to win.”
With the regular season winding down, can Kinder build momentum heading to the playoffs? Breaux believes so.
“We have three games left of the season until playoffs,” Breaux said. “I’m confident in them to finish it off.”