In 1891, at a Springfield, Massachusetts YMCA, Dr. James Naismith invented the game of basketball as the world knows it today. 127 years later, it still exists and is one of the most popular sports to play and watch. At LHS, the men’s basketball team is having one of their best seasons so far.

   The Jays are 12-4 as of January 19, averaging about 64 points a game. The Jays are ranked number 12 overall in the state of Missouri according to a sports statistics site called Maxpreps and in the Class 5 group, they are ranked number eight.

   This is all thanks to the players and coaches, who put forth so much effort, not only in practice, but also in games, to win for the school.

Junior shooting guard Alex Roush said that everything that the team does during the practices, they try to input that into the games.

   “We do drills that simulate every part of the game,” Roush said. “We’ll do defensive drills that progress into scrimmages and the offensive drills work the same way.”

   Coach Roger Stirtz believes that to win games, you must play as a unit, not for yourself, but for the team.

   “Every season, it’s exciting to see how good we can get as a team,” Stirtz said. “It’s a challenge to get better every season in an individual sport. It’s even more of a challenge to do so in a team sport. But that’s the ultimate goal.”

   The Blue Jays take practice very seriously but they also find time to mess around and have fun sometimes.

   Sophomore forward Grant Stubbs feels very strongly about the team, and loves how they interact with each other.

   “I think we have a really good dynamic,” Stubbs said. “We’re all pretty close and we have a really good bond that helps us play better on the court.”

   Roush also feels this way, explaining how they find time to tell jokes but know when it’s time to get serious and get back into practice mode.

   Stirtz is very thankful for what the team has done for him and for his life. He said that it satisfies him to see how the team sacrifices for each other.

   “Seeing a group work together for the sake of the group, not for individual attention or glory but to do it for the team. We relate that to life,” Stirtz said. “We relate it to having a family or a job. It’s a team thing. You can go through life individually, but if you go through life with a team concept you can achieve far greater things.”