We have a really special group. We have some great senior leadership and guys with experience. There's no substitution for that.

The most important leadership, I believe, comes on the field.

The neighborhood was fortunate to get the kind of internal leadership that it developed. [There was] a lot of support from community leaders, who [helped] when their own buildings were not directly affected but knew what the repercussions would be.

Our motto is 'team first' and every single guy has seemed to buy into that. This has been a really fun group to coach because they're highly motivated. It's been a pleasure.

When they come out at the start of the game shooting the ball the way they did, that's not the order of things. They banged shots early, we fell behind and we couldn't control tempo.

We gutted it out, handled pressure and made free throws at the end. We've got guys with a lot of character. When you make a state tournament run, you have to have kids who make plays.