KFDM COOP Posted January 5, 2007 Report Posted January 5, 2007 http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17673303&BRD=2287&PAG=461&dept_id=583964&rfi=6EC vs. Kountze a measuring stick Ben West had to sit and listen to it. He had no choice if he wanted his hair cut on Thursday. The Kountze boys basketball assistant coach had to constantly defend the Lions while men, that included his own barber, gave their reasons why East Chambers had the better team.It was the price he had to pay - along with a few dollars - for getting a hair cut in his current hometown of Winnie."It gets crazy in the barber shop," said West. "Everyone in there has something to say about who is going to win the game, but it's just something I have to deal with."Kountze plays East Chambers at 7:30 p.m. today in Winnie. It will be the first match up between the schools this season."It's going to be a good game," West said. "We (Kountze) want to get the win, but we don't focus on just this game."West, who is a 1993 East Chambers graduate, is even related to a member of the Bucs squad. West and Bucs guard Preston Guillory are cousins."I have to hear about Kountze and East Chambers playing on a daily basis," West said. "We don't knock the coaches or any of the faculty at East Chambers, but we handle each game one at a time. We treat every game like a playoff game. We look at it as if you lose you go home. Our goal is to win every game that we play."The roots of the current competition between Kountze and East Chambers date back to 2005 when the Lions dropped from Class 3A to 2A. Kountze was fresh off a Class 3A state championship, so most expected the Lions would run circles around their 2A competition.But East Chambers gave Kountze a big reality check when the Bucs beat the Lions 78-76 in their first district meeting that year.East Chambers won only one of four meetings, but the interest among fans still grew with each game. The schools' district playoff game drew nearly 6,000 fans to the Montagne Center that year."I think the fact that we beat them the very first time we played cracked some emotion for the community," said East Chambers coach Hank Hargraves. "We showed Southeast Texas that we could play with the best of them. And even though we haven't beaten them since, we still have that win, and we know that it can always be done again."While some say the schools are developing a rivalry, both coaches believe it's too early to be called one. But both agree it's a highly anticipated game."Some people are making it into a rivalry," said Kountze coach Duane Joubert. "I know their community is making a big deal about it, but it's just another game for us. When you worry about one team too much you can slip up and someone else can beat you. I don't look past anybody."Hargraves prefers to take it one game at a time, as well. But Hargraves admits his team is looking forward to playing Kountze."This is definitely a game our kids are excited about playing," Hargraves said. "Kountze is No. 1 in the state and they are in the same region, so we consider it more of a measuring stick to see where we are. Both state champions from the last two years came from our region."Since East Chambers' victory in 2005, Kountze has won the last five meetings. The most notable victory came later in 2005 when Kountze beat the Bucs 92-77 in the Class 2A, Region III finals. The Lions went on to win their second consecutive state title."I think from Day 1 when you get a ranking in the state everyone will be gunning for you," Joubert said. "I think if East Chambers can beat us it is a move in the right direction for them."East Chambers enters the contest 15-6 overall and 2-0 in district. Kountze is 15-4 and 1-0."It's going to be a good game," Joubert said. "They've got a good basketball club and so do we. We both want to win, so it's going to be a fight until the end."
KFDM COOP Posted January 5, 2007 Author Report Posted January 5, 2007 If anyone is going to this game please PM me for my cell number for updates.Thanks
Guest ECBucFan Posted January 5, 2007 Report Posted January 5, 2007 "Some people are making it into a rivalry," said Kountze coach Duane Joubert. "I know their community is making a big deal about it, but it's just another game for us.Yeah, I guess they barely even notice who they are playing this week :Man, what a load of CROCK coming from Joubert. A big, big load!
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