The Chapel Hill men’s basketball team’s season came to an end on February 25 after the Tigers were defeated by J.H. Rose High School by a score of 59-69 in the first round of the NCHSAA 3A state playoffs.
The Tigers finished with a record of 11-15 overall and were 5-9 in conference play.
After losing several seniors to graduation last year, the team needed new players to step up in their place.
“We lost Drew Gilleskie, David Elien, Ben Gaynes and Kai White, who were all valuable to the team,” head coach Rodney Carter said.
Carter said that many players on this year’s squad did rise to the challenge.
“Collin Himmelburg, Isaac Sinclair and Grant Ferris all stepped up. Pretty much the whole starting lineup and everyone in the rotation stepped up this season,” Carter said.
After the loss in the state tournament, this year’s Tiger seniors had to say goodbye to high school basketball.
“Stepping off the court was semi-sweet. It was upsetting that we lost, but I also looked back at my last four years on the team and I was very glad I was part of it,” senior captain Brendan MacKinnon said.
Sinclair, a senior point guard, has the opportunity to play basketball at the college level after he graduates. The captain averaged just under 15 points per game and almost five assists per game.
“I’ve been given the opportunity to play at the Division lll level, but earlier this year, I got some interests from some Division l schools, as well,” Sinclair said.
After starting off the season 5-1, the Tigers went 2-8 over the course of January.
“That was a tough month and we were discouraged at times, but we had to keep our heads up and keep competing,” Himmelburg said. Himmelberg averaged 8.5 points per game, and just under two assists per game.
The last win of this year’s season came against archrival East Chapel Hill High School in a conference playoff game, as the Tigers defeated the Wildcats 50-47 on February 18.
Many of the players were pleased to have East Chapel Hill be their last win of the season.
“I’m glad that we did beat East in our last game. Even though we lost in states, it still gave us a nice end to the season,” sophomore Jake Chisholm said. Chisholm averaged eight points per game and 2.5 rebounds per game.
Last season, Tigers ended their season in the same fashion, losing in the first round of the state playoffs. Juniors and underclassmen said they are looking forward to advancing further in the tournament next year.
“I think next year we have the potential to do really well and make a deeper run in the state tournament,” sophomore Caleb Kelley said.
Carter also has a positive outlook on next year’s team.
“We’re not losing many seniors, and I think a lot of these younger players have the ability to perform well next year,” Carter said.
