The varsity high school boys traveled to Korea International School Jeju (KISJ) on Feb. 14 for the KISAC basketball tournament. Six schools stepped up to the plate: DIS, KISJ, Saint Johnsbury Academy Jeju (SJAJ), North London Collegiate School (NLCS), Busan Foreign School (BFS), and Fayston Preparatory of Suji (FPS). After last year’s third-place finish, veteran Jets and a few rookies returned for a run at the championship title.
For the opener, they matched up against NLCS, who beat them in the semis last year. Out for vengeance, they took the lead early on, scoring 11-2 in the first few minutes of play. But the Orcas quickly caught up and kept the lead for most of the game. With 30 seconds left and DIS up by one (40-39), the Jets kept possession, rotating passes back and forth to run down the clock. As the scoreboard ticked down to zero, the bench erupted in cheers, and players stormed the court. “When the clock buzzed, I thought it was obvious that we won, so I celebrated with my teammates,” said shooting guard Evan Rossmeisl (number 2).
With high tension and fear of defeat in sight, combined with a history of a short temper, the Orcas’ coach lost his cool and argued for a call to go in his favor. The ref overruled the buzzer and gave DIS a warning: a violation of shot clock time, even in the absence of said shot clock. The refs and the KISJ athletic director discussed the call, seemingly concluding the game.
The Jets headed up to the bleachers to rest. But when they found their seats, a KISJ student told the team that the game wasn’t over yet and that they would have to return to the court to play the extra 1.2 seconds that remained on the clock, with the ball in DIS possession. If played out, this would likely be a waste unless NLCS pulled off a miracle steal and sank a full-court shot.
The KISJ Athletic Director stepped in and told the refs not to delay it any further. “I thought it was nonsensical. It was a bit stupid that they were trying to find a reason for more to happen. The clock already went out, and that’s the game. You can’t keep going after that,” said Yi Manuel Cortez (number 24), varsity starting point guard.
After that baffling round, the final pool play against FPS remained, which seemed like an easy win. However, the Jets couldn’t match the Eagles’ physicality. Alongside their aggression, the Eagles pushed, grabbed, and fouled more than other teams. This stunned DIS. With a couple of unfavorable calls, the fresh and fierce Eagles came out on top over the tired Jets.
The unexpected loss shook the varsity team. However, they rested up for day two, the day that really mattered.
In the quarter-finals, they squared up against the second-seed KISJ Dragons. As the bottom seed, the underdog Jets expected a loss. However, they did not cower under the Dragons’ pressure. The Jets showcased much better on-ball and help-side defense, and the play ran smoothly as they slayed the Dragons and moved up to the semis. “Having a 2-1 record, I was confident going against DIS. I think instead of shooting threes and calling ‘ISO’, DIS had a nice pick-and-roll game with number 5 and number 56, and that really crushed our team,” said Ian Joo Kim, Dragons’ senior baller.
The Eagles awaited a rematch in the semis. Seeking revenge, they came out soaring with an upgraded level of intensity, and the back-and-forth buckets continued. At the end of the second quarter, misfortune struck as DIS starting big/forward Colin Ji (number 0) hit the floor with an ankle injury. The Jets took a major hit with the loss of Ji but stayed in it, with DIS only down by two (41-39). Unfortunately, they failed to close it out and lost 51-43. “Yesterday, DIS looked tired because it was their second game. On the second day, they looked locked in and came out aggressive, so I was a little surprised by their loss. They looked very motivated and as if they really wanted to win,” said Robin Lee, Eagles captain.
With two key players, Colin Ji (number 0) and Brandon Hyun (number 11), sidelined with ankle sprains, the Jets entered the final match against NLCS for the bronze without a break. The Orcas struggled all day, so they threw out a Hail Mary and replaced all their starters in the final matchup. Even with the unexpected rotation, they took the lead early, leading 12-4.
The Orcas, however, upped their intensity and switched to a different defense. “In the last game, especially after we lost in the semi-finals, I wasn’t fully aware of how impactful the game was because I didn’t really think the bronze medal was on the line. The energy just wasn’t there, partly because Brandon and Colin, both key contributors—especially Colin, since he’s a senior—weren’t playing,” said Rossmeisl.
They exchanged blows, both sinking tough buckets. They fought hard, with Ethan Rossmeisl (number 5) sinking six threes, but narrowly missed the mark and lost 52-47. “I was just trying to pass the ball around to the corner and see what Ethan would do. It ended up working out, and at one point, the NLCS defenders had to face-guard him. That was their game plan—a box-and-one, where one defender just followed him around. Even with that, he was still able to get some shots off,” Cortez said.
The weekend tourney didn’t go as planned, but the Jets learned valuable lessons from the experience. They flew back to Daegu with insights into the high level of physicality required to win and the right passes they need to execute in future games. They plan to apply these takeaways to their final season tournament at the International School of Busan (ISB) for SKAIS (South Korea Associations of International Schools).
