It's been more than a decade since Northside boys basketball has made the trip to Lake Charles, signifying them as a Top 28 team in the LHSAA Boy Basketball Playoffs.
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That all changed on Friday, March 6 when the No. 12 seed Vikings hosted No. 13 St. Michael the Archangel in the Select Division II quarterfinals. They put on a show for their home crowd, beating the Warriors 66-55 to punch their tickets to the semifinals.
“Man, this is big,” Northside coach Troy Jones said. “I think it's been 12 to 13 years since we’ve been to the Top 28, so it’s a dream come true for me. To come in as a first-year head coach, it’s a dream come true.”
Leading the Vikings' historic win was junior guard Jaydon Francis, who put on a show in front of a jam-packed gym.
Northside’s selfless leader
All season long, if you’ve been following the Vikings, you know about Francis’ game. Listed at 6-foot-2, Francis's ability to score on all levels made him a big weapon against St. Michael. He opened up the game scoring 11 points in the first quarter, knocking down treys and getting to the basket at will.
When he wasn’t doing the scoring, Francis was dropping dimes and leading the Vikings halfcourt press defense. Doing anything he could to propel his team to the semis despite many not thinking the Vikings would make it this far.
“People used to be like, ‘Oh we’ll never make it,’ and stuff like that,” Francis said. “Just come out and watch it on TV. I was able to get my teammates open first, then taking the lead and taking the game over in the third and fourth quarter.”
Francis went on to finish with 31 points to lead all scorers along with six rebounds and a block. Even when the Warriors started to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter, closing the gap to just six points, Francis showed no nerves.
According to Jones, this is nothing new for the Vikings leading scorer.
“Man, he’s just one of those kids that always put in the work,” Jones said. “He belongs on a big stage because he’s worked for it. He worked all year, sometimes he would call me at 3 a.m. in the morning on a school night, we’ll set an alarm, we’d get in work and he’d take a nap in the locker room then go to class.”
Outside of him, the Vikings had key contribution from forward Khilon Woods and guard Jayden Jones. Woods ended the game with 15 points, six rebounds and a team-high four steals while Jayden Jones added six points.
With this win, Northside will face the No. 1 seed in the bracket in Madison Prep as just one of two 337-area teams to earn a spot in the semifinals.
Shannon Belt covers high school sports and the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow her high school and Cajuns coverage on Twitter: @ShannonBelt3. Got questions regarding HS/UL athletics? Send them to Shannon Belt at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Northside boys basketball heading to LHSAA semifinals after win