Basketball or Nothing (2019) s01e03 Episode Script
Chance of a Lifetime
Here we go, tied up at 42 all.
Four seconds left.
Chinle to inbound, and it's Chance Harvey.
He gets it ahead to Angelo Lewis.
Better get a good shot.
Three seconds left.
Go get him.
Go get it, Cooper.
Angelo finds Cooper Burbank.
Two seconds, one second Cooper for the win! It's off the mark, and we're headed for overtime.
Sit down, sit down.
Hey, listen.
Okay.
We've got time.
Take care of the ball.
Make sure we come to the ball.
Okay? And be patient, be patient.
Back into the action, and the Wildcats get an inside to Angelo Lewis, Lewis goes on a drive and Angelo gets a huge two points there.
Yes, let's go! And Page answers right back, and the score is knotted at 46 all.
Time out! Okay, what they're gonna do is they're gonna pressure us.
Who's takin' it out? Cooper? Okay, and then Chance, set a pick for Josiah, you go and you just open up the ball and get it in.
Then once you get in, get it back to Cooper.
Be patient, okay? Don't hurry.
Josiah Tsosie way out on top.
Now Tsosie dribbles into the corner and he he just got himself in trouble out there and he had to force a pass to Cooper Burbank.
Stop there! All right, get back, get back! You've got to work on defense! Nineteen seconds left, tied at 46.
Page down the lane, the lay up is good.
They go up two.
Chinle will have a shot to tie it or win it.
It's Cooper Burbank, he gives it up, gets it right back.
Four seconds left, the drive, the pass, it's deflected.
Loose ball and That'll do it! Cooper passes up the shot, and the Wildcats lose in overtime.
Final score 48 to 46.
They lose the home opener and their second game in a row.
Tough night for the Wildcats.
You guys don't wanna play defense? Hey, they're gonna score.
Everything they shot, they made, because nobody no hand was up.
You guys act like You say, "Well I don't wanna do it, because it might work.
Then he's gonna be right and I'm wrong.
" It don't matter.
Do it! Do your job! It's what we do as a team.
That's what matters.
And if you're not mature enough to accept that, then you shouldn't be on the team.
Very simple.
Everybody on the sideline right here, line up across.
Sometimes, you have to make decisions.
If you learn to make the right decision, then you're gonna be a positive to the team.
Otherwise, you become a negative.
It's going to take some work.
It starts with defense.
And some of you guys don't get it yet.
Then you probably won't play much.
I want to convince the kids to buy into the fact that to play, you have to play defense.
To be successful, you have to play defense.
Defense, be ready! Where's the defense? All you guys do, he's coming You can do this and recover.
"Defense, defense" He said it a million times.
I heard it a million times and when we lost two games in a row, it made me realize that we really need to play his way.
Here we go.
Rezball hasn't really been working.
So, if Coach wants us to play defense, we should do it.
Come on, let's go! Gotta go hard! You know, once we lost two two in a row Defense, guys.
We were, like, "We don't wanna go out like that.
" Both hands, Eli.
Here we go.
Because, like 'Cause we had so much expectations, we didn't wanna let the fans down, so we just thought some things had to change.
The change was made at practice when we stopped playing around, we started taking practice serious.
Okay, now.
We just started listening to Mendoza.
The The most important thing is to keep staying in front of your man.
You gotta work, defense.
That's better.
When we teach defense, I've always liked to play full-court, full-court man.
Good.
And we have to put pressure on the ball.
That's the key.
Turn, turn.
That's good.
Defense killed on that one.
We have to pressure the ball, and everybody else has to be in position.
Go, go through.
Come on, Chance, carry it.
That's good, that's good! Good screen, Willie.
We just thought to ourselves, you know, "Just play it Coach's way.
" Do the best that we can, then, hopefully, at the end of the season, we're state champs.
Good job, good job.
Good.
Be patient.
There you go.
Be patient.
Set picks as you go though! There you go, Josiah! Aah! Shoot the lay up! Any time that you're wide open, take the open lay up.
You had the lay up, Josiah.
Josiah started some games at the point, but we're still not gettin' what we want out of him.
Movement, movement! Offensively, we're we're not pushing the ball up.
And my thing is to push the ball up as quickly as possible, and hopefully get a better advantage over the defense.
Okay, Josiah, switch sides.
Dewayne, switch to this other side.
And Dewayne played well, and I think that, "Why don't we just put him at point and see what happens?" Go! Run it four high! With Dewayne at point, we'll be able to push the ball a lot quicker.
And, with him, he's more of a scoring threat, too.
There you go, Dewayne.
Good.
I decided we're gonna go with Dewayne.
That's a nice pass, Dewayne.
When he changed it, I just thought, "Maybe we can change things around, and hopefully things will turn around for us and we'll start winning.
" Of course, I had no choice but to deal with it, just play my game and do the best I can.
Whatever I can do to help the team, play my role and contribute.
Good job! Good job! Right now, I'm excited to play more, 'cause I've been playing with those guys ever since we were small.
And we just all trust each other.
Dewayne, he's a good player.
He's a good shooter, he's a good friend He's, like, my best friend.
I think Dewayne can really help us in the starting lineup.
He's a hard worker and leader on and off the court.
Okay, let's go.
On three Let's go hard work.
Ready? - Everybody.
- One, two, three.
Hard work! Get out of here.
Go eat.
I have a lot of high expectations for our team.
Yeah.
You can get something like Coach Everything will fall in place if we just keep working hard, and I just think we're going to have a pretty good season this year.
We're going to see if there's cows down at the waterhole.
There's a waterhole down there.
We're gonna go down there and chase them back up this way.
Sports has helped him a lot to grow.
We try to tell him, you know, "If you're gonna play ball, whether it's baseball or basketball, or whether you're gonna do anything in your life, you need to step up and lead.
" Being a rez kid and growin' up out here, no running water out here, no electricity out here, so really having to survive, learning how to do that.
I think that's what a rez kid is, and it really builds character in a person.
My parents used to tell me, "Just always work hard, and whatever you do, you can get through it.
" To me, it's priceless to see my son do all the things that he does.
I know he's a good kid and he's really disciplined.
I'm really proud of him.
Now that he's playing point guard position to see my son grow on the court and then in his life Goin' forward from here, the possibilities are gonna be limitless for him in life.
In our practices, I notice we're starting to come together as a group.
And everybody accepted their role, and realized that they have to be able to depend on one another.
Having Dewayne in the line up is just he just makes us a better team, as far as offensively.
And I think everybody bought into the fact that if we play good defense, we'll be able to do more things as far as, uh offense.
Welcome, everybody, to Chinle, Arizona, as the Wildcats kick off a key stretch of games and try to regroup after losing two games in a row.
Checking the Arizona State rankings, and Chinle has fallen out of the top 25.
At this point in time, that would not be good enough to qualify for the state tournament.
The number of games we have, we have 13 games left in the year.
We feel that we have no choice but to pick it up, and I think that everybody's realized that.
We wanna put it on the line and see how well we can do and then how we play will determine the success of our season.
- Wildcats on three! - One, two, three, Wildcats! This one, folks, is underway, the opening tip controlled by the Wildcats.
Patience! Defense, be ready.
Good job! Little Iso move inside and well done by Dewayne Tom.
We have to play together.
We have to play smart.
Knocked away by the Wildcats, here they go.
Go! Go with it! Knock it down.
They're finding ways to mesh, they're finding ways to find each other.
Go, Will, attack! There you go! They're leaning on one another.
P-up! P-up! - Take him out! - He has it inside And it's slapped away by Angelo Lewis.
A great start to this one if you're the Wildcats.
We started coming together more, and started trusting each other more.
Cap! Go in the middle, go in the middle! Yeah! If you look at this team now and when we first started, we're not the same two teams.
Looking, looking and he has his pass stolen away! Chance Harvey stole it.
That's what I kind of like about Mendoza, he brought control to the rezball.
Go get it! It was the kind of thing where you realized something special was happening.
Wildcats! Yeah, go! We are the Wildcats! It's exciting when the team is winning.
And you know, we haven't had a state title.
So every year, we hope, you know, this could be our year.
It'd be just amazing for a small reservation town to go down there and take State this year.
Nobody's gonna come here lighting me up on my home court, because if we do our job, nobody can score on us.
Yeah! I tell my guys all the time, we have to peak at the right time.
Dewayne Tom drives and puts this one away.
Another victory for the Wildcats.
And I believe the boys peaked at the perfect time of the season.
Oh, man.
Have a seat real quick.
Hey, listen, guys as a team, I think we've improved quite a bit, because I think we've gotten better defensively, we've gotten better offensively.
I think we understand each other I mean, we work better together as a team.
So So all those things have to come together The guys are playing better, but we can never get comfortable.
At this point in the year, we want to end on a positive note at home, to get them prepared for the playoffs.
Hey.
Good win! Let's go! We've gotta be on our toes, and especially against a team like Tuba City, who always always play well against Chinle.
We have to be be ready to play at the high level.
Wildcats on three.
One, two, three, Wildcats! This year, we could be one of the best teams in the state.
We could probably be the number one team.
With all that has to come hard work and doing things in the classroom first, before we can do anything at practice.
People think of us, like, as a small team, think of us as kids.
When we start playing, their whole attitude changes about us.
And they think we're weak, they think we're slow, they think we can't play basketball.
- But then we prove them wrong.
- Good! That's better! Good job, nice shot.
We have played together since junior high, and we have a lot of chemistry together.
And, at the end of the day, it's what makes us a dangerous team in the state.
Find your shooters! Be patient! My style of play is just to pass the ball, take care of the ball and play defense.
It doesn't matter if I score, and I don't really care to score, because we have shooters to score.
My job was just to give them the ball and play defense.
There you go.
That was good.
Okay, now.
We're in a position like, again, we're starting to play better, I think.
This group is starting to come together.
I'm not saying we're there yet, we still need to work at what we're gonna do, what we need to do.
And Chance, I think you have to work the hardest, 'cause you have to guard the the top dog from the other team.
Senior year, I just want to play as hard as I can and finish the season with whatever I got left and then I want to go as far as we can in the playoffs.
It means a lot to me.
I just think about, what can I do to make my family proud? I've got Give that! Oh! Oh! - Ready? - Yeah.
I've got that.
I have my little brothers, my nephews, my little cousins lookin' up to me.
And they always ask me how it feels to do this, be that Aaah! - You won! - I won! Yeah.
So, these are my accomplishments over the years, and This is probably the one that means the most to me, though.
Willie Mays MVP award out of the whole league.
My nickname.
It says right here "Chance 'Cookie' Harvey.
" I got "Cookie" back when I was younger.
I don't know how, but "Cookie" became my nickname.
All these years, we've been going to baseball tournaments, basketball tournaments and Even during the summer, we did a lot.
I've been with my mom a lot and I could say I'm a mama's boy.
And And Um Yeah, she's been here for me, going to all these tournaments, just seeing her in the crowd I mean, I'm thankful for my mom and everything she does.
It was just me and him at times.
When he turned five um his dad passed.
Mm.
When I was younger, I didn't understand the concept of my dad passing away.
I got a little bit older, and I was already in sports, back in school.
I was doing good, and it just, um it kind of, like, pushed me to do even more.
Sophomore year, he made it to, um varsity.
- Varsity, um - Basketball.
Yeah, basketball and That was the first time he cried for his dad.
When he made it to varsity, and he We We both I cried with him, and that was the first time he cried.
Yeah.
It's It's hard, it's hard at times, with him.
Mm.
Yeah, I think the sports is keeping him busy and keep going.
Mm.
Everything I did was all about thinking about my dad.
I mean when the season started, I kept my dad in mind.
And Yeah, so so I pushed myself real hard.
I wanted my dad there.
I just had to play my hardest every game.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We come here every so often.
And we pray.
Like when we have, like, special occasions, we all come up here and we just pray.
Grandma always used to say, "Don't ever come around here if you don't have any coins to put down.
" It's like an offering for our prayers to be answered.
I would like for my future to be bright and to go out to school, get my degrees and just find a good paying job and come back to where I was raised from.
We want him to be better than all of us.
Accomplish more than what we accomplish.
He has a strong mind and heart.
And he wants to go get a degree, and I'm pretty sure, what degree he gets, he's gonna bring it back and help the Navajo Nation with it.
I tell myself, every time I go through something hard, "It's all gonna be worth it in the end.
You're gonna make a lot of people proud.
" And it kind of, like, motivates me too, so I just keep pushing myself through it.
He's a good kid, he's a real good kid.
When When my sister and Chance's father got together, she was pregnant, and then the the kid didn't make it.
So So, they tried it again and then this time, it made it.
That's why his name is Chance, 'cause he had a chance in life.
That's how he's here.
Yeah, he made it.
There are hardships here that our kids are dealing with on a daily basis.
Some of the most difficult obstacles any student can endure.
So, through this basketball team, we want our kids to learn those methods, the mentality, the that a person needs to learn to to overcome obstacles, to reach a goal and to become successful.
So, if all 13 to 15 guys on this year's basketball team can come back in ten years and say, "Here's what I'm doing and I'm happy," that's the goal.
Corn, there's corn, guys.
Thanks.
The kids need to eat.
They're hungry, they're teenagers.
- That's your third one - That's my first one.
The pre-game meal, um It's a really good way to develop the team unity.
I think that's really important.
I'm excited for the boys, you know? Everybody's excited.
Chinle's excited.
Over the last couple of weeks, we've shown ourselves that we can play with anybody.
We could possibly leap ourselves into the top eight, uh, as far as the state standings, and we can get a first round bye and get ready to roll.
Tonight, I think Tuba City's gonna try to hit the deep ball.
They've got a few kids who can hit it uh, from NBA range.
We're gonna have to play tough defense and take care of business.
Okay, everybody kind of fall into place and have a seat.
One thing I know for sure, when we play well, it's because we play together.
In a lot of ways, we all are responsible for each other.
Defense is a team thing.
You know, uh Chance, his main job is to defend the the better player.
He's gonna get on number 13 tonight, and we've gotta limit him as much as we can.
if we play hard every game, we're gonna we're gonna accomplish those things that we want.
And we're we're right there, I think.
I believe we we're almost there.
If we just get do the little things, then we can be we can make it.
Welcome to Wildcat Den here in Chinle, Arizona.
Tonight it's two of the top teams in the 3A North Division, facing off in their final game of the regular season.
The Warriors of Tuba City against the red hot Chinle Wildcats.
Thanks to a few upsets, Chinle has moved up one spot in the state rankings.
They are number nine overall.
We're Chinle.
Chinle Wildcats fans, are you here? Everybody's got us circled on their calendar, everybody's lookin' at beating us at home and we can't lose these home games.
All right, get back! Get back! P-up, P-up.
Tuba City's number 13, Tristan Yazzie from downtown.
Yazzie guarded by Chance Harvey.
He turns it over.
It's Cooper Burbank the other way.
The pull up, and the sophomore buries the three.
No foul.
Stay in front of him.
Help! Yazzie drives past Chance, the acrobatic shot.
It's good.
And Chance Harvey picks up his first foul.
How many? One.
Tristan Yazzie, one of the best scorers on the Navajo Nation, always a tough defensive assignment.
He's on fire tonight, as Tuba City takes a nine-point lead early on.
Okay, you can't leave him.
Just stay with him,.
He's gonna shoot from anywhere.
Here we go, here we go.
Touch pass to Angelo Lewis, who lays it in.
There you go.
Gotta push on the offense here! Chance Harvey on the drive.
A whistle, and he's called for the charge.
That's foul number two on Chance.
Chance, what are you doing? Sub, sub! Josiah, take Chance.
Help out on 13.
Yazzie on the drive.
Cooper Burbank forces the turnover.
He goes the other way for the lay in.
The Warriors trying to feed Yazzie.
And it's another Tuba City turnover.
And Cooper Burbank makes them pay.
Cooper keeping the Wildcats in this one.
And Tuba City calls time out.
Hey, no foul! Dewayne Tom to Cooper Burbank.
Cooper looks for the shot, it's not there.
Passes over to Chance Harvey.
Chance drives, and he barrels into Yazzie.
What are you doing? That's another foul on Harvey, his fourth of the game.
Let's go.
Come on.
And Coach Mendoza has no choice, he's gotta get his senior guard out of the game.
The guy's right in front of you.
Just take it back down.
- Hey, get back in there.
- He was still moving.
Look, you didn't have to run the guy over, that's a turnover.
Angelo Lewis to Cooper, the give and go, and Cooper lays it in.
This one has been back and forth all night.
Chinle with the ball, up one with just ten seconds left in the game.
Cooper to Dewayne Tom, a nice look and Dewayne lays it in.
And Tuba takes a time out as Chinle leads by three with six seconds to play.
Sit down, son.
Defensive, we've gotta get in their face right away, okay? Lolo, you're right here.
Cooper, you're right here.
No fouls, okay? No fouls.
Now, if 13, if we can sandwich him, let's do it.
Chance, are we ready to go? Okay, smart 13.
Wildcats on three.
One, two, three, Wildcats.
Excellent.
Six seconds left.
Tuba City down three and with the ball.
Chance Harvey back in the game for Chinle.
The inbound at first to Yazzie.
He goes past Harvey, but Chance flicks it from behind, it rolls out of bounds and the buzzer sounds, and that'll do it! What a play by Harvey to seal this one for the Wildcats.
They win it, 51 to 48, in a thriller.
Hey, listen, guys, that's how you gotta play, with composure, with poise all the way through.
Even though we got in foul trouble, but everything everybody that came off the bench stepped up, and that's what you gotta do.
And I thought we didn't play that well first half, and then by the second half, there was a difference.
You guys did a good job.
And because you did such a good job, guys, we're taking the day off tomorrow.
- Get some rest, okay? - Yeah! Sleep in.
Wildcats on three.
One, two, three, Wildcats! Good job.
You shut him down.
Thank you.
I always tell our kids, "We wanna be playing well at the end of the year.
" I felt that the team They raised it to another level, I thought.
Get some rest.
We're in the Den at three o'clock Monday, okay? Don't forget.
There's a lot of things that we try to accomplish in a season that will help them to realize that hey, there's always a chance to be successful at whatever you do.
And in this case, basketball.
- There! - Aah! And now, my goal is to get them prepared for the playoffs and to convince the kids to believe that they can accomplish something that's never been done at Chinle High School.
Right now, we're preparing for the regional tournament, which is only a few hours away.
If we play like we're playing now, there's no reason why we can't win the whole thing.
Hey, listen guys, the thing we keep talking about is belief.
I think a lot of people don't succeed in life because they don't think they can do it.
You can't have that doubt.
Hey, we've proven that we can do it.
You've gone this far, so you've gotta keep going.
And at this point in time, I trust you.
It is a lifetime opportunity.
Hey, go enjoy it.
Have fun, guys.
Let's go.
- Wildcats on three.
- One, two, three, Wildcats! I always believe that there's always a first time.
Hey, we want to win a state championship.
I believe they can.
You've gotta believe.
Four seconds left.
Chinle to inbound, and it's Chance Harvey.
He gets it ahead to Angelo Lewis.
Better get a good shot.
Three seconds left.
Go get him.
Go get it, Cooper.
Angelo finds Cooper Burbank.
Two seconds, one second Cooper for the win! It's off the mark, and we're headed for overtime.
Sit down, sit down.
Hey, listen.
Okay.
We've got time.
Take care of the ball.
Make sure we come to the ball.
Okay? And be patient, be patient.
Back into the action, and the Wildcats get an inside to Angelo Lewis, Lewis goes on a drive and Angelo gets a huge two points there.
Yes, let's go! And Page answers right back, and the score is knotted at 46 all.
Time out! Okay, what they're gonna do is they're gonna pressure us.
Who's takin' it out? Cooper? Okay, and then Chance, set a pick for Josiah, you go and you just open up the ball and get it in.
Then once you get in, get it back to Cooper.
Be patient, okay? Don't hurry.
Josiah Tsosie way out on top.
Now Tsosie dribbles into the corner and he he just got himself in trouble out there and he had to force a pass to Cooper Burbank.
Stop there! All right, get back, get back! You've got to work on defense! Nineteen seconds left, tied at 46.
Page down the lane, the lay up is good.
They go up two.
Chinle will have a shot to tie it or win it.
It's Cooper Burbank, he gives it up, gets it right back.
Four seconds left, the drive, the pass, it's deflected.
Loose ball and That'll do it! Cooper passes up the shot, and the Wildcats lose in overtime.
Final score 48 to 46.
They lose the home opener and their second game in a row.
Tough night for the Wildcats.
You guys don't wanna play defense? Hey, they're gonna score.
Everything they shot, they made, because nobody no hand was up.
You guys act like You say, "Well I don't wanna do it, because it might work.
Then he's gonna be right and I'm wrong.
" It don't matter.
Do it! Do your job! It's what we do as a team.
That's what matters.
And if you're not mature enough to accept that, then you shouldn't be on the team.
Very simple.
Everybody on the sideline right here, line up across.
Sometimes, you have to make decisions.
If you learn to make the right decision, then you're gonna be a positive to the team.
Otherwise, you become a negative.
It's going to take some work.
It starts with defense.
And some of you guys don't get it yet.
Then you probably won't play much.
I want to convince the kids to buy into the fact that to play, you have to play defense.
To be successful, you have to play defense.
Defense, be ready! Where's the defense? All you guys do, he's coming You can do this and recover.
"Defense, defense" He said it a million times.
I heard it a million times and when we lost two games in a row, it made me realize that we really need to play his way.
Here we go.
Rezball hasn't really been working.
So, if Coach wants us to play defense, we should do it.
Come on, let's go! Gotta go hard! You know, once we lost two two in a row Defense, guys.
We were, like, "We don't wanna go out like that.
" Both hands, Eli.
Here we go.
Because, like 'Cause we had so much expectations, we didn't wanna let the fans down, so we just thought some things had to change.
The change was made at practice when we stopped playing around, we started taking practice serious.
Okay, now.
We just started listening to Mendoza.
The The most important thing is to keep staying in front of your man.
You gotta work, defense.
That's better.
When we teach defense, I've always liked to play full-court, full-court man.
Good.
And we have to put pressure on the ball.
That's the key.
Turn, turn.
That's good.
Defense killed on that one.
We have to pressure the ball, and everybody else has to be in position.
Go, go through.
Come on, Chance, carry it.
That's good, that's good! Good screen, Willie.
We just thought to ourselves, you know, "Just play it Coach's way.
" Do the best that we can, then, hopefully, at the end of the season, we're state champs.
Good job, good job.
Good.
Be patient.
There you go.
Be patient.
Set picks as you go though! There you go, Josiah! Aah! Shoot the lay up! Any time that you're wide open, take the open lay up.
You had the lay up, Josiah.
Josiah started some games at the point, but we're still not gettin' what we want out of him.
Movement, movement! Offensively, we're we're not pushing the ball up.
And my thing is to push the ball up as quickly as possible, and hopefully get a better advantage over the defense.
Okay, Josiah, switch sides.
Dewayne, switch to this other side.
And Dewayne played well, and I think that, "Why don't we just put him at point and see what happens?" Go! Run it four high! With Dewayne at point, we'll be able to push the ball a lot quicker.
And, with him, he's more of a scoring threat, too.
There you go, Dewayne.
Good.
I decided we're gonna go with Dewayne.
That's a nice pass, Dewayne.
When he changed it, I just thought, "Maybe we can change things around, and hopefully things will turn around for us and we'll start winning.
" Of course, I had no choice but to deal with it, just play my game and do the best I can.
Whatever I can do to help the team, play my role and contribute.
Good job! Good job! Right now, I'm excited to play more, 'cause I've been playing with those guys ever since we were small.
And we just all trust each other.
Dewayne, he's a good player.
He's a good shooter, he's a good friend He's, like, my best friend.
I think Dewayne can really help us in the starting lineup.
He's a hard worker and leader on and off the court.
Okay, let's go.
On three Let's go hard work.
Ready? - Everybody.
- One, two, three.
Hard work! Get out of here.
Go eat.
I have a lot of high expectations for our team.
Yeah.
You can get something like Coach Everything will fall in place if we just keep working hard, and I just think we're going to have a pretty good season this year.
We're going to see if there's cows down at the waterhole.
There's a waterhole down there.
We're gonna go down there and chase them back up this way.
Sports has helped him a lot to grow.
We try to tell him, you know, "If you're gonna play ball, whether it's baseball or basketball, or whether you're gonna do anything in your life, you need to step up and lead.
" Being a rez kid and growin' up out here, no running water out here, no electricity out here, so really having to survive, learning how to do that.
I think that's what a rez kid is, and it really builds character in a person.
My parents used to tell me, "Just always work hard, and whatever you do, you can get through it.
" To me, it's priceless to see my son do all the things that he does.
I know he's a good kid and he's really disciplined.
I'm really proud of him.
Now that he's playing point guard position to see my son grow on the court and then in his life Goin' forward from here, the possibilities are gonna be limitless for him in life.
In our practices, I notice we're starting to come together as a group.
And everybody accepted their role, and realized that they have to be able to depend on one another.
Having Dewayne in the line up is just he just makes us a better team, as far as offensively.
And I think everybody bought into the fact that if we play good defense, we'll be able to do more things as far as, uh offense.
Welcome, everybody, to Chinle, Arizona, as the Wildcats kick off a key stretch of games and try to regroup after losing two games in a row.
Checking the Arizona State rankings, and Chinle has fallen out of the top 25.
At this point in time, that would not be good enough to qualify for the state tournament.
The number of games we have, we have 13 games left in the year.
We feel that we have no choice but to pick it up, and I think that everybody's realized that.
We wanna put it on the line and see how well we can do and then how we play will determine the success of our season.
- Wildcats on three! - One, two, three, Wildcats! This one, folks, is underway, the opening tip controlled by the Wildcats.
Patience! Defense, be ready.
Good job! Little Iso move inside and well done by Dewayne Tom.
We have to play together.
We have to play smart.
Knocked away by the Wildcats, here they go.
Go! Go with it! Knock it down.
They're finding ways to mesh, they're finding ways to find each other.
Go, Will, attack! There you go! They're leaning on one another.
P-up! P-up! - Take him out! - He has it inside And it's slapped away by Angelo Lewis.
A great start to this one if you're the Wildcats.
We started coming together more, and started trusting each other more.
Cap! Go in the middle, go in the middle! Yeah! If you look at this team now and when we first started, we're not the same two teams.
Looking, looking and he has his pass stolen away! Chance Harvey stole it.
That's what I kind of like about Mendoza, he brought control to the rezball.
Go get it! It was the kind of thing where you realized something special was happening.
Wildcats! Yeah, go! We are the Wildcats! It's exciting when the team is winning.
And you know, we haven't had a state title.
So every year, we hope, you know, this could be our year.
It'd be just amazing for a small reservation town to go down there and take State this year.
Nobody's gonna come here lighting me up on my home court, because if we do our job, nobody can score on us.
Yeah! I tell my guys all the time, we have to peak at the right time.
Dewayne Tom drives and puts this one away.
Another victory for the Wildcats.
And I believe the boys peaked at the perfect time of the season.
Oh, man.
Have a seat real quick.
Hey, listen, guys as a team, I think we've improved quite a bit, because I think we've gotten better defensively, we've gotten better offensively.
I think we understand each other I mean, we work better together as a team.
So So all those things have to come together The guys are playing better, but we can never get comfortable.
At this point in the year, we want to end on a positive note at home, to get them prepared for the playoffs.
Hey.
Good win! Let's go! We've gotta be on our toes, and especially against a team like Tuba City, who always always play well against Chinle.
We have to be be ready to play at the high level.
Wildcats on three.
One, two, three, Wildcats! This year, we could be one of the best teams in the state.
We could probably be the number one team.
With all that has to come hard work and doing things in the classroom first, before we can do anything at practice.
People think of us, like, as a small team, think of us as kids.
When we start playing, their whole attitude changes about us.
And they think we're weak, they think we're slow, they think we can't play basketball.
- But then we prove them wrong.
- Good! That's better! Good job, nice shot.
We have played together since junior high, and we have a lot of chemistry together.
And, at the end of the day, it's what makes us a dangerous team in the state.
Find your shooters! Be patient! My style of play is just to pass the ball, take care of the ball and play defense.
It doesn't matter if I score, and I don't really care to score, because we have shooters to score.
My job was just to give them the ball and play defense.
There you go.
That was good.
Okay, now.
We're in a position like, again, we're starting to play better, I think.
This group is starting to come together.
I'm not saying we're there yet, we still need to work at what we're gonna do, what we need to do.
And Chance, I think you have to work the hardest, 'cause you have to guard the the top dog from the other team.
Senior year, I just want to play as hard as I can and finish the season with whatever I got left and then I want to go as far as we can in the playoffs.
It means a lot to me.
I just think about, what can I do to make my family proud? I've got Give that! Oh! Oh! - Ready? - Yeah.
I've got that.
I have my little brothers, my nephews, my little cousins lookin' up to me.
And they always ask me how it feels to do this, be that Aaah! - You won! - I won! Yeah.
So, these are my accomplishments over the years, and This is probably the one that means the most to me, though.
Willie Mays MVP award out of the whole league.
My nickname.
It says right here "Chance 'Cookie' Harvey.
" I got "Cookie" back when I was younger.
I don't know how, but "Cookie" became my nickname.
All these years, we've been going to baseball tournaments, basketball tournaments and Even during the summer, we did a lot.
I've been with my mom a lot and I could say I'm a mama's boy.
And And Um Yeah, she's been here for me, going to all these tournaments, just seeing her in the crowd I mean, I'm thankful for my mom and everything she does.
It was just me and him at times.
When he turned five um his dad passed.
Mm.
When I was younger, I didn't understand the concept of my dad passing away.
I got a little bit older, and I was already in sports, back in school.
I was doing good, and it just, um it kind of, like, pushed me to do even more.
Sophomore year, he made it to, um varsity.
- Varsity, um - Basketball.
Yeah, basketball and That was the first time he cried for his dad.
When he made it to varsity, and he We We both I cried with him, and that was the first time he cried.
Yeah.
It's It's hard, it's hard at times, with him.
Mm.
Yeah, I think the sports is keeping him busy and keep going.
Mm.
Everything I did was all about thinking about my dad.
I mean when the season started, I kept my dad in mind.
And Yeah, so so I pushed myself real hard.
I wanted my dad there.
I just had to play my hardest every game.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We come here every so often.
And we pray.
Like when we have, like, special occasions, we all come up here and we just pray.
Grandma always used to say, "Don't ever come around here if you don't have any coins to put down.
" It's like an offering for our prayers to be answered.
I would like for my future to be bright and to go out to school, get my degrees and just find a good paying job and come back to where I was raised from.
We want him to be better than all of us.
Accomplish more than what we accomplish.
He has a strong mind and heart.
And he wants to go get a degree, and I'm pretty sure, what degree he gets, he's gonna bring it back and help the Navajo Nation with it.
I tell myself, every time I go through something hard, "It's all gonna be worth it in the end.
You're gonna make a lot of people proud.
" And it kind of, like, motivates me too, so I just keep pushing myself through it.
He's a good kid, he's a real good kid.
When When my sister and Chance's father got together, she was pregnant, and then the the kid didn't make it.
So So, they tried it again and then this time, it made it.
That's why his name is Chance, 'cause he had a chance in life.
That's how he's here.
Yeah, he made it.
There are hardships here that our kids are dealing with on a daily basis.
Some of the most difficult obstacles any student can endure.
So, through this basketball team, we want our kids to learn those methods, the mentality, the that a person needs to learn to to overcome obstacles, to reach a goal and to become successful.
So, if all 13 to 15 guys on this year's basketball team can come back in ten years and say, "Here's what I'm doing and I'm happy," that's the goal.
Corn, there's corn, guys.
Thanks.
The kids need to eat.
They're hungry, they're teenagers.
- That's your third one - That's my first one.
The pre-game meal, um It's a really good way to develop the team unity.
I think that's really important.
I'm excited for the boys, you know? Everybody's excited.
Chinle's excited.
Over the last couple of weeks, we've shown ourselves that we can play with anybody.
We could possibly leap ourselves into the top eight, uh, as far as the state standings, and we can get a first round bye and get ready to roll.
Tonight, I think Tuba City's gonna try to hit the deep ball.
They've got a few kids who can hit it uh, from NBA range.
We're gonna have to play tough defense and take care of business.
Okay, everybody kind of fall into place and have a seat.
One thing I know for sure, when we play well, it's because we play together.
In a lot of ways, we all are responsible for each other.
Defense is a team thing.
You know, uh Chance, his main job is to defend the the better player.
He's gonna get on number 13 tonight, and we've gotta limit him as much as we can.
if we play hard every game, we're gonna we're gonna accomplish those things that we want.
And we're we're right there, I think.
I believe we we're almost there.
If we just get do the little things, then we can be we can make it.
Welcome to Wildcat Den here in Chinle, Arizona.
Tonight it's two of the top teams in the 3A North Division, facing off in their final game of the regular season.
The Warriors of Tuba City against the red hot Chinle Wildcats.
Thanks to a few upsets, Chinle has moved up one spot in the state rankings.
They are number nine overall.
We're Chinle.
Chinle Wildcats fans, are you here? Everybody's got us circled on their calendar, everybody's lookin' at beating us at home and we can't lose these home games.
All right, get back! Get back! P-up, P-up.
Tuba City's number 13, Tristan Yazzie from downtown.
Yazzie guarded by Chance Harvey.
He turns it over.
It's Cooper Burbank the other way.
The pull up, and the sophomore buries the three.
No foul.
Stay in front of him.
Help! Yazzie drives past Chance, the acrobatic shot.
It's good.
And Chance Harvey picks up his first foul.
How many? One.
Tristan Yazzie, one of the best scorers on the Navajo Nation, always a tough defensive assignment.
He's on fire tonight, as Tuba City takes a nine-point lead early on.
Okay, you can't leave him.
Just stay with him,.
He's gonna shoot from anywhere.
Here we go, here we go.
Touch pass to Angelo Lewis, who lays it in.
There you go.
Gotta push on the offense here! Chance Harvey on the drive.
A whistle, and he's called for the charge.
That's foul number two on Chance.
Chance, what are you doing? Sub, sub! Josiah, take Chance.
Help out on 13.
Yazzie on the drive.
Cooper Burbank forces the turnover.
He goes the other way for the lay in.
The Warriors trying to feed Yazzie.
And it's another Tuba City turnover.
And Cooper Burbank makes them pay.
Cooper keeping the Wildcats in this one.
And Tuba City calls time out.
Hey, no foul! Dewayne Tom to Cooper Burbank.
Cooper looks for the shot, it's not there.
Passes over to Chance Harvey.
Chance drives, and he barrels into Yazzie.
What are you doing? That's another foul on Harvey, his fourth of the game.
Let's go.
Come on.
And Coach Mendoza has no choice, he's gotta get his senior guard out of the game.
The guy's right in front of you.
Just take it back down.
- Hey, get back in there.
- He was still moving.
Look, you didn't have to run the guy over, that's a turnover.
Angelo Lewis to Cooper, the give and go, and Cooper lays it in.
This one has been back and forth all night.
Chinle with the ball, up one with just ten seconds left in the game.
Cooper to Dewayne Tom, a nice look and Dewayne lays it in.
And Tuba takes a time out as Chinle leads by three with six seconds to play.
Sit down, son.
Defensive, we've gotta get in their face right away, okay? Lolo, you're right here.
Cooper, you're right here.
No fouls, okay? No fouls.
Now, if 13, if we can sandwich him, let's do it.
Chance, are we ready to go? Okay, smart 13.
Wildcats on three.
One, two, three, Wildcats.
Excellent.
Six seconds left.
Tuba City down three and with the ball.
Chance Harvey back in the game for Chinle.
The inbound at first to Yazzie.
He goes past Harvey, but Chance flicks it from behind, it rolls out of bounds and the buzzer sounds, and that'll do it! What a play by Harvey to seal this one for the Wildcats.
They win it, 51 to 48, in a thriller.
Hey, listen, guys, that's how you gotta play, with composure, with poise all the way through.
Even though we got in foul trouble, but everything everybody that came off the bench stepped up, and that's what you gotta do.
And I thought we didn't play that well first half, and then by the second half, there was a difference.
You guys did a good job.
And because you did such a good job, guys, we're taking the day off tomorrow.
- Get some rest, okay? - Yeah! Sleep in.
Wildcats on three.
One, two, three, Wildcats! Good job.
You shut him down.
Thank you.
I always tell our kids, "We wanna be playing well at the end of the year.
" I felt that the team They raised it to another level, I thought.
Get some rest.
We're in the Den at three o'clock Monday, okay? Don't forget.
There's a lot of things that we try to accomplish in a season that will help them to realize that hey, there's always a chance to be successful at whatever you do.
And in this case, basketball.
- There! - Aah! And now, my goal is to get them prepared for the playoffs and to convince the kids to believe that they can accomplish something that's never been done at Chinle High School.
Right now, we're preparing for the regional tournament, which is only a few hours away.
If we play like we're playing now, there's no reason why we can't win the whole thing.
Hey, listen guys, the thing we keep talking about is belief.
I think a lot of people don't succeed in life because they don't think they can do it.
You can't have that doubt.
Hey, we've proven that we can do it.
You've gone this far, so you've gotta keep going.
And at this point in time, I trust you.
It is a lifetime opportunity.
Hey, go enjoy it.
Have fun, guys.
Let's go.
- Wildcats on three.
- One, two, three, Wildcats! I always believe that there's always a first time.
Hey, we want to win a state championship.
I believe they can.
You've gotta believe.