Red-Hot Eastside Surges into District Championship Game
Eastside suffered a 62-51 loss to Buchholz on Jan. 16 to drop to 7-7 on the season and looked destined for a fifth consecutive losing season.
Since then, the Rams haven’t looked back, rattling off seven consecutive wins to finish the boys basketball regular season with a 14-7 record.
The strong finish to the regular season allowed Eastside to capture the No. 2 seed in the 4A-District 5 Tournament, setting up a regular-season rematch with No. 3 seed Ocala Lake Weir (13-9).
With a spot in the regional tournament likely on the line Thursday at home in the semifinal, Eastside knew it was a must-win game to keep its magical second-half run alive. In a back-and-forth contest, the Rams didn’t blink, knocking off Lake Weir 58-54 to advance to their first district championship game since 2021 when they finished 20-3 after losing in the region semifinal.
Following a close first half, the Rams came out of the halftime break on fire for an 8-0 run. Junior Jaivion Williams’ efforts kept the Rams rolling until the final buzzer, scoring 14 points in the second half to finish with a game-high 21.
Williams is keeping his focus on the job at hand.
“I’m thinking about my team winning,” Williams said. “Keeping our head down working and just staying level-headed.”
This mentality has pushed the Rams (15-8) to their best record since that 2020-21 season.
Still, the Rams know the job isn’t finished, with an even bigger test awaiting in the district championship game. Eastside will travel to top seed Citra North Marion (20-3), ranked No. 27 in the state (MaxPreps), for a chance to win the district title Saturday. The Colts advanced by ending Santa Fe’s season at 9-17 with a 67-45 win in the other semifinal Thursday.
Eastside dropped both regular-season meetings against the Colts, losing by 11 and seven points, respectively, and understands the challenge.
“It will take a lot of work,” Eastside coach Herman “Pop” Williams said. “They are a tough team, they beat us twice, so hopefully we come to play.”
Category: Basketball, Eastside High School, High School Sports
