To most on campus, it is agreed upon that there is no better event to watch than a Slope sports game.
The student section in the corner of the gymnasium is strong and spirited, decorated in the finest exhibit of Sunnyslope pride.
This pride is on display for the boys’ basketball team, which most recently led us to a 6A State Championship in the 2020-2021 season and an Open Division Runner-Up in the 2022-2023 season.
Under the coaching of Head Coach Ray Portela, the Sunnyslope Boys have won three state championships.
Last year, the expectations were set high.
Running off of the desire to avenge themselves after the past year’s loss against Perry, the Vikings were prepared to go all the way.
But, the season was unfortunately cut short after a 50-56 loss to Millennium in the second round of playoffs.
Although a state championship would be a dream for the players, there is more apprehension about where the team will end this season.
Sophomore Delton Prescott said, “Last year we had very high expectations. We still have high expectations, but not as much as last year.”
For now, the team is taking this season one step at a time.
“Our two goals every day are to get better, to win the next game. If a state championship comes out of that, great, but those are our two goals, just to win our next game and get better at each and every day,” said Ray Portela.
Though, this doesn’t mean that they have admitted defeat.
“We still have a great chance to [go] back to state,” said Junior Cristian Simmons.
Since the last season ended, the team has undergone significant changes.
Seniors like Jai Anthoni Bearden and Beau Hartman graduated alongside the shocking transfer of John Mattingly and Dominic Rojas to Central High School.
The transfers of the two players came as a surprise to many.
Ray Portela refused to comment on the issue, claiming that bringing attention to it would discredit the team and the hard work they have done this off-season.
But, according to his players, the transfers were still a big deal to the team.
“Once we heard what happened, it was kind of a downward spiral,” said Junior Rider Portela.
However, after the initial shock wore off, the team was still confident with what they had.
“Everyone thinks that we need them. But, in all reality, we’re still going to play great without them,” said Junior Cristian Simmons.
Mattingly, the lead scorer of the 2023-2024 season, reportedly left Sunnyslope for a multitude of reasons, most concerning his family.
“My decision on transferring to Central mainly revolved around my family and my little brother Grant and deciding what would’ve been best for us,” said Mattingly.
Mattingly dreamed of playing alongside his brother, Grant, which was a factor in his decision.
According to players, Grant was wary of joining Sunnyslope’s team because of the amount of players playing his position that were already on the roster.
Simmons said, “John just wanted to play with his little brother. And his little brother didn’t really want to come here because he felt like there’s too many guards.”
Mattingly neither confirmed nor denied, instead saying, “Grant was a factor in my decision to transfer because it’s been a dream of mine to share the court with him and I’m happy I get to do it with him at Central.”
Rider Portela said that Mattingly’s sister also works as a coach at Central, seemingly giving Mattingly even more of an incentive to move to the Bobcats.
Rojas, his teammate and long-time friend soon followed separately.
“Me and Dom going to Central together wasn’t planned, it was just something that we felt at the time benefited our own interests,” said Mattingly.
Although from the outside it looked like bad news for the team, the players believed these transfers to be a blessing in disguise.
“Coach Portela makes it abundantly clear, you know, we play as a team here, and I feel that John and Dom were just looking for more of their own individualistic opportunities,” said Senior Owen Hillis. “I think the fact that he was such a great scorer was kind of a detriment to our team as a whole because now that he’s gone, we have to work together more to be able to get those points, instead of just relying on him.”
This season, an influx of transfers joined the basketball team.
Sophomore Mikey Shepston and Juniors Kaleb Seow and Kade Synder have filled the spot left by graduating seniors, Mattingly, and Rojas.
“I feel like we lost a lot of scoring with John, but we got some shooting back with Kaleb, and then Mikey is more of a defender, which is replacing Dom,” said Sophomore Darius Wabbington.
“And then we got Kade, who is really good on the boards, and he could stretch the floor, and that’s ultimately what we need because Jai was our best defender last year.”
This could lead to them seeing playing time this season with the addition of open spots in the roster.
“Mikey, Kaleb, and Kade are all extremely talented, and I think they’re going to help us out and really compete for some playing time this year,” said Ray Portela.
Seow is enjoying the contrasting cultures at Sunnyslope in comparison to his previous school, Basha High School.
“It’s just the overall, like the camaraderie of everyone together and like people are, everyone’s very, like welcoming, and there’s definitely, like, a different culture around,” said Seow.
The team prides itself on this, claiming their no-nonsense friendships keep the team this way.
“I just think we don’t have any drama. Like, there’s no drama. We don’t have any negative feelings towards each other, so it keeps us together,” said Prescott.
All in all, despite all the changes that occurred, the team isn’t dwelling on the past.
Instead, they are excited for their promising future.
Until then, they will continue to work toward their goal: being the best possible version of their team.
