Bellaire’s first state title abruptly ended with a rimmed out shot.

But for the boys who dedicated their high school basketball careers chasing this win, the final shot wasn’t something they would change, but something they would grow from.

Despite the predicted blowout by Duncanville, Bellaire lost the UIL’s state championship,  54-52 at the Alamodome on March 8.

Long before defeating Brennan in the state semifinals, Head Coach Bruce Glover was already mapping out a plan for state. On March 1, 2024, an entire year before the 2025 state competition, Bellaire went home after losing to Clear Springs.

“Preparation started after we lost last year’s game against Clear Springs,” Glover said, “After that game, kids started working over summer. The coaching staff got together saying, ‘Okay, what can we do?’”

Following the 2023-2024 season’s semi-final defeat, Glover made it his goal to keep his players consistent in order to avoid another early exit.

“We wanted to stay on track with the preparation,” Glover said. “Make sure we’re doing the right things in the classroom, make sure we’re doing the right things in and away from basketball.”

Despite the team’s hard work, Glover noted that fewer unforced turnovers and missed free throws could have changed this year’s outcome at state. Beyond on-court challenges, he also saw the boys endure “growing pains” throughout the season.

“We had some hiccups, Shelton was down a little while, and the team had some knick-knack injuries,” Glover said. “But we chalked that up as going through the process and when they all came back, we were better coaches and they were better players because of it.”

On the court, Texas Southern University commit and senior Anthony “LJ” Andrews contributed with 17 points. Andrews prioritized consistency not only on the day of the championship but throughout the season.

“My mindset was basically just to be the same the whole way through,” Andrews said. “So from the first game of the year to the last game of the year I wanted to play it cool, play better, so if we did make it here, I wouldn’t be nervous.”

After the boys arrived in San Antonio the day before the championship, they woke up bright and early for a shoot-around at the Alamodome and then a second shoot-around at another high school in San Antonio. As the day progressed, Andrews reminded himself to “be cool throughout,” but when the first whistle blew, he couldn’t help but let the nerves slip in.

“You definitely felt it in the beginning,” Andrews said. “Especially because it is my senior year, this is my last game here, and the most important game I’ve played. But I have played so many games that it just eventually got normal again.”

Alongside Andrews, senior Shelton Henderson, a Duke University signee, scored a game-high 25 points. Henderson expressed how he tried to contain his feelings of anticipation and simply be in the moment with his team.

“We spent a lot of time together waiting for the game to start, just talking about how the season went, looking back how far we came,” Henderson said. “When that time came, we were all locked in and ready to play. We were kinda nervous at the start and it showed in the first quarter, but after that, we got the nerves out. We just started to play our basketball.”

Henderson was disappointed by the outcome of the game, but he didn’t fail to show his pride and gratitude for the team.

“I wish we got that last shot, but I don’t have any regrets,” Henderson said, “I had a lot of fun playing with my team and playing hard, I’m just proud of how far we came.”

Also leaving Bellaire basketball next year, senior Ejypt Gibbs is grateful for the relationships he gained throughout his high school journey.

“Four years of Bellaire basketball and I don’t regret any of it,” Gibbs said. “Especially this team this year. Coming into this, I wasn’t expecting to have the bonds that we have now, so I’m just thankful for the brotherhood.”

Just like the rest of the seniors, Gibbs has high hopes for the team they are leaving behind. Still, with how far the team made it this year, they have “pretty big shoes to fill regardless of the win or not.”

With each quarter ending with a score no more than 2 points apart, when the last 5 seconds approached, Bellaire was suddenly in a buzzer-beater opportunity. From the top of the key, senior Kholman Dutton passed the ball to sophomore Jadarian William who was spotted up in the corner behind the three-point line.

As the clock wound down, Williams released a high arching shot, but unfortunately, it glanced off the front of the rim.

“I felt like the game was on me,” Williams said. “I felt like I failed my teammates.”

But for the rest of the team, Williams was never a failure. He was exactly what the team needed.

“I know now that it’s not true,” Williams said. “They told me that they would have wanted me to shoot that shot any other day, any other time, they would still count on me to shoot that shot.”

Williams wants to continue the legacy that will be left by his senior teammates that he has grown to love for making him the player he is today.

“We’re gonna keep it going, and we’re going to go back,” Williams said, “I want to go back.”