With WESCO South opponents on the horizon and the playoffs in the near future, the Knights Boys Basketball team is poised to make a playoff run.

“We’re finally starting to click,” said Kamiak head coach Cory West.

In a season filled with injuries to key players, the team looks at their loss to Rainier Beach High School in December as their turning point.

That game, an 85-58 defeat, opened the team’s eyes, West said.

“They beat us pretty well, but it was good experience for the guys,” he said.

Senior center JD Blacksmith agreed that the loss was an eye-opener.

“People realized how hard we need to work to be successful,” Blacksmith said. “Everybody has, since then, just really been onboard and really working hard.”

The hard work has led to some victories, including a 72-60 win last week over Lake Stevens. As upcoming games begin to weigh heavily on playoff contention, the team is focused on getting on a winning streak.

“These are all the games that count in our conference and determine our seeding [in the playoffs],” said Imaan Vicente, a junior post and wing player for the Knights. “If we get on a roll right now, teams will know we’re out to get them.”

The team is finishing up a string of WESCO North opponents before next week when they begin to compete against WESCO South teams for the second time this season.

The Knights are 3-3 in conference play and currently vying for supremacy in the Southern conference with Jackson and Edmonds-Woodway.  

The team said it’s going to take a lot of effort in practice to stay in contention with the other WESCO South schools.

In practice, West teaches the Knights to take the season one day at a time.

“One day at a time and one game at a time,” he said. “Now everybody’s focus is on the next day.”

“Every day we want to have a better practice.”

Since West took over as head coach four years ago, his aim has been to create a winning environment and attitude amongst his players. He started out by bringing up as many underclassmen to varsity as possible.

In his first year as coach, the Knights went 1-19. Rather than becoming discouraged, the team had full-fledged practices even after their season was over.

“We still had that desire to win,” said Blacksmith, who was a freshman at the time. “As soon as our season was over, we just wanted to start working on improving.”

After years of focusing on improvement, the seniors are trying to end their last season on the team with a successful playoff run.

“We’ve worked so hard for four years and now it’s time to do something,” Blacksmith said. “The whole team wants it, but especially the seniors.”

As the season begins to heat up, West said the Knights just need to play their best.

“I’m excited for the rest of the season,” he said. “It’s time to separate the men from the boys.”