South Lyon sophomore forward Graham Braun wanted to soak up the moment just a little longer as he flexed and vexed a satisfying smile near the end of the Lions game against Waterford Mott.
Mott’s Octave Lawrence had just attempted a shot in the lane and Braun smacked it into next year. The Jungle roared and Braun let the cheers sink it. It was one of the few bright moments of the night for South Lyon.
When Braun made his big play the Lions trailed 61-19 on their way to a 63-29 thrashing.
“I never stop until the whistle is done,” Braun said. “I am always going to keep playing and give my best effort.”
The loss nearly duplicated the Lions 66-23 loss at Mott (8-3) 11 days earlier. But the Lions (1-10) did not come into this game looking for moral victories or Mr. Hustle awards. They came here to win. No matter the score or the opponent the Lions look to inflect damage.
Braun is never one to back down, give up or give in no matter the score. Howver, reality hit quickly. Mott scored the first 15 points of the game on its way to a 19-2 first quarter lead. No one could touch Mott junior forward Kalieb Osborne who blitzed South Lyon for 22 points on 9-for-11 shooting, and five rebounds in just 14 minutes.
Why in the world did the Lions (1-10) believe they could beat this team?
“We knew going into this we were a different team than the first time we played them,” Braun said. “We’ve played some tight games since then. We were going to come out and give them our best shot. It just didn’t work out our way.”
Braun has two years remaining at South Lyon and believes the Lions can be title contenders in the Lakes Area Conference before he leaves. The biggest detriment to this team is varsity experience. None of the 14 players had played varsity ball coming into the season. Braun is one of five sophomores on the roster, who are joined by six juniors.
If they grow together and allow passionate coach Jeff Schmitz to lead them anything can happen.
“We believe in that locker room that we can beat anybody we play when we play our basketball,” Braun said.
There were few bright moments for the Lions. But junior guard Shilen Britton provided a couple when he broke the ankles of a Mott guard with a slight of hand move. He also caused the Jungle to stand and roar when he forced an over and back.
Braun led South Lyon with nine points and four rebounds.