Pep talk wakes up Chieftains at the half

SHIPROCK

It is one thing to win a big game at an opposing team’s house, but another to protect one’s own.

That was a lesson the Shiprock High School boys’ basketball team learned last week when they picked up their fourth straight District 1-4A victory, a 50-37 win over Navajo Preparatory School.
The Chieftains had somewhat of a rough start, but prevailed in the second half for the win.

Shiprock head coach Chester Atcitty, Jr., said a short pep talk at the half did the trick.

“’There’s a lot at stake with this ball game here,’ we told the guys. ‘It’s not just another ball game. It’s your house, it’s one of your last, second-to-last game here,’” he said. “’Come out protecting your house with better energy, better focus, better execution, and offensively just being aggressive, and attacking the hoop.’”

Shiprock gave a nod to their coach and did the work in the second half of the game.

But a tight first half made the outcome look like it might be similar to the last meeting where it came down to the wire. Shiprock pulled out the win in the last meeting between the two, but Navajo Prep didn’t stray far from taking over.

In the first quarter, Navajo Prep had a strong start while Shiprock worked to get their feet under them. The Eagles led 12-6 with about two minutes left in the quarter, but Shiprock pulled through for a 6-0 run to tie the game 12-12 to conclude the quarter.

Shiprock finally grew comfortable and extended the run to 6-0, to lead Navajo Prep 18-12. Navajo Prep surged back with a 10-0 run and led Shiprock 23-19 at the half.

Atcitty said his team just had to find their groove.

“I think it’s just being uptight, in terms of playing too tense. I think we just had to relax a little bit. We had good looks, we just had to get them game jitters out of us at the very beginning,” Atcitty said. “In the second quarter, we had a bit of a breakdown defensively. They (Navajo Prep) moved the ball well, they attacked real well, and we just fell behind.”

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