The Branson boys basketball team capped off a strong season by advancing to the Division III state playoffs. The Bulls also finished second in MCAL with a 7-2 league record and a 19-16 overall record.
Along the way, the Bulls qualified for both the MCAL championships and the NCS championships by securing several notable wins.
According to team captain Luke Vilhauer ‘26, some of the team’s highlights included beating Redwood 52-49 during a home game, defeating University 72-64 and playing in tournaments like The Classic at Damien.
In addition to these accomplishments, NJ Gray ‘27, who is also a team captain, said a highlight was seeing the team’s younger players grow on and off the court as individuals.
This season also brought a new set of responsibilities for Gray after the team lost two of its starting players, Chase Robertson ‘26 and Heath French ‘27.
“Jumping into being a younger team again, only having three juniors and two seniors, I feel like we did a very good job,” Gray said.
Part of the team’s success can be attributed to their goal-oriented approach.
According to sophomores Bryce Spears ‘28 and Hunter Zack ‘28, the team’s main goals were written on a board at the beginning of the season. This included winning MCAL, NCS, and State. Although the team came up short in some championship games, Spears and Zack were proud of how the team came together.
“A lot of things happened at the beginning of the year, and I think our team did a great job at working around it and just persevering through adversity,” Zack said. “I think everybody had one another’s backs when things went wrong, and throughout the season we got better, picked each other up and helped each other out through constructive criticism.”
For the next winter season, Spears and Zack look forward to playing together as a team and watching the team improve during the offseason.
Additionally, Gray looks forward to creating a culture where the whole team is bonded.
“Over the years, I heard before that [the team] was a little bit separated between the classes, so I definitely want us to all be one because I feel like that would help us on the court,” said Gray.
