SELMA, Ind. — Setting a high bar has recently become a tradition for Wapahani High School's boys' basketball program. With less than 400 students enrolled at the school, Head Coach Matt Luce has quietly molded his team into a powerhouse.
“We’ve just been blessed with guys that work hard and want to get better,” stated Luce when asked about his formula for success.
Over the past three seasons, Wapahani has won three county championships, three sectional championships, three regional championships, and a semi-state title that they are looking to defend Saturday morning in Michigan City. As last year’s state runner-up in class 2A, the Raiders believe they have what it takes to return to Gainbridge Fieldhouse this spring.
“When we come in here every day and practice, and we see that runner-up banner on the wall, it’s a good reminder of what we accomplished last year, but it’s also a good reminder of what we have to do to get back there and get to the next level,” said Junior Camden Bell, who leads the team in scoring this season with 17.8 points per game.
“They’ve stayed very consistent throughout the year. We don’t have a lot of bad practices. We don't have a lot of anything that goes wrong,” remarked Matt Luce regarding his team’s work ethic.
“We don't have drama. We just have guys that show up that enjoy being around each other and the coaches, and want to win.”
While Luce gives the credit to the players’ positive attitudes, the team believes their brotherhood, chemistry and togetherness is what makes their team hard to beat.
“We've just been playing together for a really long time, and we’ve just built a lot of chemistry up,” stated Senior Noah Henderson. “It feels like playing basketball with your family. It just doesn’t feel like playing with any other team.”
In addition to the family atmosphere they’ve built on the court, the Raiders know they also have immense support off the court and within the Selma community.
“I think the community’s a driving factor behind the team, and I feel like if they didn’t show up, I don't think we would,” voiced Henderson.
“It shows when we ride our bus into Selma, and everyone’s sitting outside and cheering us on, giving us high fives, it’s amazing, and it’s just really cool to see,” added Nate Luce.
Wapahani will look to give their community even more to root for this weekend as they seek their second straight semi-state championship.
Contact Jayden Collins with comments at jayden.collins@bsu.edu.
