Last week's game against the Madison Middle School Bulldogs was no doubt one to forget as the McClure Middle School Mavericks fell hard 57-27, dropping to 0-2 in league play.
It was especially frustrating for Lamontez and Lamontay Steward-Baker, twin brothers who have become the tandem leaders of the team, and despite the point spread, held their own with noticeable chemistry.
"Me and my brother, they say we're too physical," Lamontez said in the locker room after the game. "They see how we play together."
"Yeah, he's more of a passer than a shooter," Lamontay added. "But when he wants the ball he wants it. He's very determined."
Anyone watching the game would have seen the unspoken bond between the two. In one instance, with 4:53 left in the game, Lamontay stripped the ball from a Madison player. The ball was quickly retrieved by Lamontez who saw his brother already down court. They made eye contact and Lamontez chucked the ball over the Madrona defender and into the arms of Lamontay who scurried up for an easy lay-up shoring up the point distance 23-52.
About a minute later, another Tay-to-Tez connection was made which brought the game to 25-54.
Two minutes after that, Lamontez circled the key and launched a ball into a high orbit and hitting nothing but net to make it respectable at 27-54.
By now the Mavericks had all the momentum, but time would run out.
The duo would lead the team in scoring with a combined 14 points.
When it was over, coach Michael David talked to the team in the locker room for a good 20 minutes, letting players cool down. The Steward-Baker brothers absorbed the information and after were already thinking about their next game for the advanced Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) league.
Tay and Tez, who just turned 13 on Sunday, have been playing together since the third grade. Their dad has been giving them pointers at a court near their home and they just stuck with it - football, too.
"We practice, practice, practice," Lamontay said.
"We practice after practice, before and during practice everyday," Lamontez said with a smile.
That practice has led to pure chemistry where each can anticipate the other's move. Lamontez said, "me and my brother communicate." He might see Lamontay tap his leg a bit and that will be a signal to pass the ball to the left.
Now all the Mavericks need to do is let the Tay and Tez chemistry spread to the rest of the team. And the wins will surely come.[[In-content Ad]]
