Carver exacts sweet revenge, dominates McMain in Class 4A boys basketball title game

LAKE CHARLES – The George Washington Carver boys basketball program has been through a lot of adversity on the hardwood in the last three years.

The Rams were a No. 6 seed in 2020 but had to play all their playoff games on the road due to a punishment from the LHSAA. Carver made it to the Top 28 but lost to Breaux Bridge 57-48 in the Class 4A semifinals.

Last season, Carver came out smoking with a 28-2 record but dealt with a couple of blows. Their first round game was moved to another venue because of a shooting outside of their gym but the Rams still made it all the way to the state finals where they fell to Eleanor McMain, 49-48.

Carver head coach Nathaniel Roche said the mood was ‘all or nothing’ this season for the Rams.

‘All’ won out in the end.

Carver returned to the scene of heartbreak from one year ago to claim redemption against their Uptown New Orleans rivals, crushing McMain from the outset in a 66-31 state championship game victory Saturday at the Burton Complex.

Carver celebrates redemption in Lake Charles after their 4A title game win pic.twitter.com/dLARBtWwCg

— CCS Prep Coverage (@CCSprep) March 12, 2022

It was no contest. Carver (29-2) set the tone early with a Solomon Washington slam dunk. Willie Anderson had a hot start, scoring 11 points in the first quarter as the Rams took an early 26-4 lead.

Washington kept things rolling with a hook shot and two-handed slam dunk while Carver smothered the Mustangs defensively on the way to a 38-10 halftime lead.

McMain (24-6) showed signs of life in the third quarter with driving layups by Kaigler and Christian Pichon while Alex Hammond added on with a jumper but there was no comeback in the offing. Carver maintained their big lead with a three pointer by Finister and a layup by Anderson.

The Rams put the icing on the cake when Corey Chest was rejected in mid air by Washington on a fast break dunk attempt.

Carver had four players scoring in double figures. Washington, the Texas A&M commit, was the Most Outstanding Player with 12 points, 20 rebounds, nine assists and six blocks.

Anderson finished 17 points, five rebounds and three assists. Nathan also had 17 points. Finister scored 14 points, six rebounds and two assists.

Kaigler led McMain with 11 points, three rebounds and two steals. Hammond finished with eight points, five rebounds and two steals.

Carver took home the program’s first state title since 2003 and second overall in school history.