Coach Sam Jackson Reflects on Championship Game and Season

Last weekend the Spartans of Winooski High School faced off against the Wildcats of Hazen for the Vermont DIII high school basketball championship. 

Winooski went into the game as the top seed in the division, but Hazen, the number two seed, emerged victorious with a score of 37 to 34.

“Hazen is great,” said Jackson. “They're a good team, and they came ready to play.” 

“It was hard for us to get the flow going a bit,” said Jackson. “But I think that we love being on that stage.”

This was a new environment for the Spartans, after having a long absence from the championship, but the team rose up to the challenge as best as they could.

“The kids responded well, we're down 11 at one point, climbing back with three chances to try to push an overtime with the last, you know, 20 seconds of the game and it just came up short,” said Jackson. 

“You win some, you lose some and that's the journey,” he said.

Despite the defeat, coach Sam Jackson of the Winooski Spartans had a lot of good things to say about the game and the season. 

“We made a deep playoff run, really can't ask for much more than that,” said Jackson. “They really came together as a unit and trusting each other and so we had overall it was a great season.”

A great season indeed — this was the Spartan’s first championship appearance since 2010, and the team has come a long way. 

“We're talking about the decade,” said Jackson. “It takes a few years to get your system in place as a coach.”

This is Jackson’s fourth season as the coach of this team, and the period of adjusting and rebuilding is over, allowing the team to really come into their own as a unit.

“When you come in still on other guys' systems for you know, a year or two, but by year three or four is like really your four classes [start] coming through,” said Jackson. “You know, clearly my systems in place, you know, they, in turn, start to win more games, start to compete at a higher level.”

Jackson’s system, and the team, will continue to grow, with more rising seniors ready to take on leadership roles next season. One current junior in particular is on pace to make big strides next season, improving on a fantastic season this year, Jackson said.

“Trevon Bradley, who was [a] 1000-point scorer as a junior, so he will be returning next year. Trevon was the heartbeat of our team,” said Jackson. “He really sets the tone for us and having him back for his senior year is going to be amazing. I mean, he's on track to beat the school's record all time points.” 

Bradley also made quite an impact in the Spartan’s final game of the season, battling to keep his team in the game.

“He had like, five points in like 20 seconds,” said Jackson. “That's pretty amazing.”

Jackson also mentioned the changes to the roster next season that will have an affect on the team dynamic, and how that will impact them.

“The dynamic next year will be different and we're losing a lot of senior leadership,” said Jackson, “I'll miss them dearly, but know that my rising juniors are hungry.”

Jackson congratulated the team for the work they have put in off the court in addition to their hard work on the court, making sure that life lessons are being learned in addition to making plays. 

“I challenged [the] boys to be the ambassadors in their community and ambassadors in our school,” said Jackson. 

“We know that basketball is going to end one day, and I want them to be better people through this process,” Jackson said.

All photos courtesy of Sam Jackson.