By By J.W. Condrey
Staff Writer
The Northview High School Chief's men's basketball team continued their winning streak this week.
The varsity boys capped off a near-perfect regular season by winning the district championship over the Jay High School Royals on Feb. 22, by a score of 59-58.
The Chief's moved on to play in the first round of the regional playoffs on Thursday at home against the Vernon Yellow Jackets.
The Yellow Jackets came into the game with a season record of 13-13. The Chief's have posted a record of 17-5 thus far.
The Chief's managed to prevail in a tight contest that saw lots of defense.
Northview's Daryl Cohen was lead scorer for the night and grabbed five rebounds off the glass. John Madison also contributed on both sides of the boards.
After the initial buzzer sounded the Chief's jumped out to a 10-0 lead with five unanswered baskets in front of a puzzled Jacket squad.
With the action fast paced, the Chief's went into a scramble with the Jackets and Cohen came out on top with the ball and took it to the hoop for a basket.
But the Jackets focused into the game and came back to tie the Chiefs.
At the half the Chiefs went to the locker room with a narrow margin over the Jackets.
After the beginning of the second half the game remained close with both teams battling it out under the glass.
One Jacket player was injured after a high-flying attempt at a dunk. Cohen defended and ended up with the ball and the player had to be assisted off the court.
"I am very proud of the boys. They have worked very hard to get to the stage that they are at now," siad Chief's Head Basketball Coach Cliff Gillies.
"The game could have went either way, but tonight it was meant for us to win."
In a side note, Cohen has been named the best offensive player and best score maker in the state of Florida, according to Gillies.
The honors come in addition to being a star athlete for the Chief's varsity basketball squad and a star athlete on the Chief's football team as well.
The Chief's have earned the ranking of one of 16 top teams in the State of Florida thus far this season.