Chamberlain Boys Shake Off Jitters to Begin Postseason on Right Foot

Chamberlain High School boys basketball coach Christopher Snyder was concerned about his young team’s jitters entering their Class 5A-District 9 semifinal against King High School  on Wednesday at Leto.

With all but three players having no postseason experience, Snyder wasn’t surprised at his team’s sloppy play in the first half, he said. But led by senior Eric Storts’ 22 points, the top-seeded Chiefs (21-2) pulled away from King for a 71-59 victory.

Fourth-seeded King proved stubborn, leading by four points after the first quarter. Chamberlain reclaimed the lead by halftime at 28-27, then took control with a 10-point lead after the third quarter. The Chiefs sprinted to a 22-point lead midway through the fourth quarter before King’s Rashard Brown tossed in five three-pointers as part of his game-high 32 points to make the final more respectable. Twenty-five of those came in the last stanza.

“We played with a little more intensity in the second half, which is how we played all year,” Snyder said. “We went 29 of 34 from the free-throw line, which saved us in the second half.”

Junior David Cook added 15 points for Chamberlain, sophomore Reggie Hart had 12 and his brother, senior Rod Hart, bagged 10.

In addition to Brown, Chauncey Day scored 15 for the Lions.

The Chiefs play second seeded Sickles for the district crown Friday night at 7:30 p.m.. The Gryphons romped past Freedom 72-32 in their semifinal. Both teams advance to next week’s regional tournament.

Chamberlain split two regular season games with Sickles, winning the first game by five and losing the second by 18.