After winning the Wichita Falls Fantasy of Lights Tournament, the Farmers[8-0] will be continuing their undefeated road toward the GISD Curtis Culwell Invitational, and was scheduled to open with Sachse [1-5] today before the game was cancelled due to winter weather.

The team has never played Sachse, but head coach Gary Collier does not see that detail as a problem.

“I’ll probably get a chance to look at them and see how they are,” Collier said. “We didn’t know a whole lot about the teams we played, but we learned as we went [through the games].”

The team is currently ranked 9th in class AAAAA according to the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches poll.

So far this season the team is averaging 66.6 points per game with junior Anthony Davis leading the way with 13.5 points per game, and 2.1 blocks and is second in rebounding with 6.6 per game. Davis is shooting 51 percent from the field and 78 percent from the free throw line. Senior Kaelin Love is the leading 3-point shooter, shooting 35 percent from beyond the arc, and is the team’s leading rebounder at 7.4 per game to go along with 9.8 points per game. Senior Diamante Langston is averaging 12.1 points per game and junior Marquis Williams leads in assists with 5.5.

With such tight game schedules and teams that are not decided until the game before is won in tournaments, there is no way to tell sometimes who the next opponent will be. This week’s off-day on Tuesday gave the team a chance to step up and work on any improvements.

“We play a lot of games in a short amount of time,” Collier said. “On Friday we played two games and Saturday we played two games which is more than normal, but it gives us a chance to settle back down and focus on some things we need to work on.”

This year’s tournament win in Wichita Falls has proven that the team has improved.

“Tournament was very good,” Collier said. “We played very well, and we had some really good competition. We played two public schools and two prep schools. The guys played well. I think we did a good job continuing to build team chemistry and I was very pleased. Last year we lost in the championship game and this year we went in and won it all, so it’s kind of proof that we are improving from last year to this year.”

At this point, Collier only has a few concerns, one of them in hopes that the team’s physical attitude and mentality stays fit.

“The thing I’m a little skeptical about is that I don’t want them to stop giving that same effort they do in practice,” Collier said. “I think it’s a group that’s more mature than last year and the cause of that is they understand the value of practice and not getting a big head.”

The mental fitness and attitude are also important, Collier said, especially considering the team’s high ranking.

“I told the guys not to get complacent and satisfied, to stay hungry,” Collier said. “Sometimes you win a lot of games, because in my last school we won 21 games in a row, and that 18th or 19th game is harder than that 3rd or 4th game. The reason why is after awhile you beat teams so much, you feel like you don’t have to start out really well and you let your guard down, so to speak. We still have a lot to prove.”

The team has improved from last year, and being undefeated makes the Farmers a target to opponents.

“They’re a little bit more skilled,” Collier said. “We’re better as far as our shooting is concerned. We’ve had guys that have really done well. I think the guys have improved in confidence and a lot of times that’s what we were lacking last year.

“Right now we’re aware of the bullseye being on our backs. Teams will be playing us a lot harder than they would normally play us and because of that, we need to be willing to play a lot harder than we normally would.”

Senior guard Robert Lopez said that the team will be going to the playoffs, not only as a team, but a family who has deserved and earned the wins so far.

“We’re going into the playoffs, I can tell you that,” Lopez said. “Right now we’re ranked high in the state and we’re the only ones undefeated in our district right now. Close to the end of the season, we’re going to go far. We have lots of potential to go far and my first year has been really great with this team, because in my opinion we’re really good and we have the abillity to do lots of great things now and later on in the season.”