JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — After trailing Paxon by 11 points midway through the 4th quarter, the Raines boys' basketball team pulled off the comeback, securing a spot in the Gateway Conference finals.
With the Vikings trailing 44-33 around the 5-minute mark in the final period, Raines did not allow a single field goal from the floor for Paxon, only allowing them to score four free throws.
Raines is being led by first-year head coach Torien Moore, who had to overcome his own hurdles during this game.
"My mindset was coach, you can't panic. Everybody expects you to panic. You're a young coach. But I had to show them that I can go through adversity," said Moore. "So, I called a timeout for my guys and said hey, we got to breathe. Let's breathe. Listen to the gameplan, and they did exactly what I asked them to do. We just got to stay together. We just got to stay humble and do what we got to do with the task. We got one more game. Job not done yet."
Raines will face Andrew Jackson in the 2024 Gateway Conference finals, which is set for Saturday, Jan. 27, at 3:30 p.m. at Andrew Jackson High School.