As both the varsity captain and the team’s leading scorer for the LACES boys’ basketball team, Devine Anderson has been a key piece of the team’s success this season. The LACES boys’ team has won nine games, seven more than the previous season.
“Coming into the season, people slept on us, and we really showed them we can be a threat to any team,” said Anderson. Off the court, Anderson serves as a team leader by offering younger players a listening ear and guidance.
Anderson remains confident of the 2025-26 varsity team’s ability to win. While the team consists mostly of new players, except for himself and Shane Ferguson, Anderson believes that the Unicorns can get the job done. The Unicorns did, in fact, get the job done, especially against the Westchester Comets, as they got their first victory against them ever. “I’m proud of our guys. We were able to beat Westchester, which they said LACES has not done in decades.”Mansasa Chanaiwa, the LACES PE teacher, has also played a huge role this season for the Unicorns. Chanaiwa, formerly the assistant Rolling Hills Prep coach in 2023, is now the LACES boys varsity basketball coach.
“We have accomplished more than I expected at the beginning of the year. I think that it’s a tribute to how well these players have bought into what we’re trying to do,” said Chanaiwa.The stats speak for themselves. Under Chanaiwa’s leadership, the varsity Unicorns have not only won more games than the previous season but have also jumped one spot to No. 6 in the Western League.
Another major factor in Coach Chanaiwa’s success is his “finish line” mentality. The finish-line mentality forces players to focus on their end-of-season goals.“That’s what we really focus on. We prepare for every game, but we also prepare to be able to win the final game because not everybody’s able to do that,” said Chanaiwa.
On Thursday, February 12th, the LACES girls’ varsity basketball team will face Grant High School in the playoffs. This season, the Lady Unicorn’s success has largely been due to the Dynamic Duo, Mila Sano and Nyala Clark, the team’s 1st- and 2nd-leading scorers. While Sano and Clark have been vital to the team’s eight wins, the Unicorns will enter Thursday’s playoff matchup without Sano, who is still recovering from an injury. Coach D, the team’s new Head Coach, is counting on the entire team to get the playoff win.
“I can say as a team, they have come together as a whole. Instead of just one player, they have united and gotten better together,” said Coach D.Going into the playoffs, Coach D’s strategy is to focus on the team’s tenacity. “This team has so much courage, last year I was hearing that they wanted to quit after a loss”, said Coach D Coach D is also instilling and fostering a growth mindset amongst the players. “After a loss, I told them, I said, when you win, you win, and even when you lose, you win. It’s all about how you finish”, said Coach D. On Thursday, February 12th, the Lady Unicorns plan to compete for the win, no matter how the game unfolds.