The Seven Lakes Boys Basketball team is on a historic run, winning 25 straight games as they head into district and regional competition. With 17 players and five coaches, the Spartans have remained unbeaten, securing wins over longtime rivals such as Cinco Ranch and Tompkins and positioning themselves as one of the top teams in Texas Class 6A this season.
“It’s just amazing to do something that’s never been done before at the school,” captain and junior Isaiah Santos said. “Obviously the job’s not finished, but right now it just feels amazing being [in] a place that no other Spartan basketball player has been in before.”
Players attribute much of their team’s success towards the coaching staff’s emphasis on trust and accountability.
“[Coach] Heston believes in us and he thinks that if we play our way, that we can beat anybody,” senior Hudson Smith said. “Just that trust in us is kind of how it all starts.”
Although the team did not train during the summer, head coach Shannon Heston said he provided players with individualized areas to focus on during the off-season.
“We start working on piecing everything together with the skills our team has and try to play to the strengths of our players,” Heston said. “If we are playing with great effort and making shots, we are very hard to beat!”
While the Spartans have won every game so far, maintaining focus has been an ongoing challenge, Santos said.
“There have been times during games where, as a team, we start underestimating the opponent or just starting to get a little bit sloppy in terms of how we play,” Santos said. “But we’re getting better at [focusing].”
Behind the success of their current season, players emphasize the importance of resilience and not giving up.
“Basketball is more of a mental sport than a lot of people think,” captain and senior Jose Martins said. “I think [it’s] just being able to come back from a bad game with a positive mindset and being able to perform the game after that.”
As the Spartans gear up for State competition in March, the team remains focused on one objective.
“We have one goal: win the state championship,” Heston said. “We want to push ourselves daily, and a goal like this is a reminder that we need to improve each opportunity we have.”
