The boys basketball team (6-14, 1-5 in district) will play their last game of the first round of district at West Mesquite (8-12, 5-1) tonight at 7 p.m.

“They’re an up-tempo team, and they love to press and shoot the 3-pointer,” head coach Kyle Herrema said. “Defensively, we need to protect the gaps, don’t let them penetrate, contest shots, and keep them off the glass. Offensively, we have to take care of the basketball. We have to have some composure when trying to beat the press and recognize the numbers on the back end of things.”

West Mesquite currently holds the third seed in the district. Junior Jonathan Lawrence said a win could really help the team by snapping their four-game losing streak.

“It is a very important game for us because if we want to get to playoffs, we need to win out,” Lawrence said.

The Leopards played a close game Tuesday night versus Highland Park, but fell short at the end, losing 51-41.

“We just missed some shots,” Heremma said. “It happens. We had a little stretch where we didn’t take care of the basketball and we didn’t get some of the things that we wanted. We moved the ball really well and got some good looks, but we just didn’t knock them down.”

As the first round draws to a close, the team will have another opportunity to play these teams again and snag a playoff spot before it’s too late.

“We’ve played Forney and Royse City, the two teams leading the district at 5-1,” Herrema said. “We went to overtime at both of their places and had legitimate chances to win. We need to tweak some things, but overall we just have to play a little better. We look forward to playing them on our home floor.”

Freshman Carson Holden said he is confident in his team’s ability going forward.

“We all know we can beat these teams,” Holden said. “I think there is a chance we can make a run and make it to the playoffs.”