For Xavier’s IBA Cleveland Cavaliers senior team captain Ryan Jasper, it is all about who a team drafts.

“Drafting senior Devin Lansing was the best thing I could have done to help my team win a championship,” Jasper said. “My other draft picks contributed to this team win as well.” The Intramurals Basketball Association championship game was played on Wednesday, March 8, right after school.

The two teams participating in the championship were the Boston Celtics and the Cavaliers. The Celtics were led by all-star player senior Ian Walther and lock-down defender senior Brian Lang; while the Cavaliers were led by the dynamic duo of Jasper and Lansing.

The final score was the Cavaliers winning 42-32.

The Celtics got off to a good start with a 10-2 lead with Lang putting the team on his back.

The Celtics also did a good job of stopping Lansing at the start of the game by triple, and sometimes quadruple, teaming him. The Cavaliers came storming back and took a 26-23 lead when hit Jasper three. Once they took the lead, they led the rest of the way. The Cavaliers won the championship game.

Lansing led the Cavaliers in scoring with 16 points and was a monster on the boards as well. Lansing looks up to NBA player Dirk Nowitzki as his hero. Jasper thinks Lansing’s play is very similar to the Dallas Mavericks power forward.

For Lansing, the feeling was incredible.

“It was a great feeling,” Lansing said. “It was nice going into spring break with the win.

“ I didn’t actually go to Disneyland, but instead, I went to my farm to celebrate.”

The Cavaliers were outscoring teams all season, winning some games by as much as 40 points or more. With the win in the championship game, the Cavaliers capped off an undefeated season.

Cavalier junior, Will Karpick outplayed his brother Brad, by scoring four points compared to just Brad’s two points. For Jasper, he thought his team handled the pressure very well.

“Mrs. Lemker tried to rattle us by heckling our team, but we overcame the badgering, and Devin led our team to a championship win,” Jasper said.

The Cavaliers will try to repeat next IBA season.

Mahlon Steepleton

Sports Writer