Seniors Anachack Phomthirath and Eron Phillips and junior Keith Lopez played key roles in helping the Westgate High School boys’ basketball team cap a special season with a return to the state semifinals in 2017 for the first time since the Tigers won the Class 5A state championship in 2007.

The trio of WHS standouts were selected by the sports staff of The Daily Iberian to head the 2016-17 Boys’ Basketball Large School Best of the Teche Team, joined by New Iberia Senior High standouts Chamaje Barideaux and Ty’rik Landry.

Phomthirath, a senior guard, averaged 18 points a game and was chosen as the District 5-4A MVP and earned second-team Class 4A All-State honors. He was selected as the Large School MVP for the Best of the Teche team.

Phillips, a senior point guard, averaged 10 points a game. Everything the Tigers did on offense went through him as the point guard, Westgate High coach Oliver Winston said.

“He thinks he’s 6-4 and he can get to the rim when he wants to and he can shoot it when he wants to,” Winston said after the Tigers beat Warren Easton to advance to the semifinals. “He’s an incredible kid.”

Winston was named the Coach of the Year for the large schools team, comprised of schools in Class 5A through 3A in The Daily Iberian’s coverage area.

Lopez, a junior forward, changed the tempo of game with blocked shots and rebounds. He earned first-team All-District honors.

“He was basically a double-double machine,” Winston said. “He changes the scope of the game in front of him because we know if it breaks down, he’s behind us.”

Barideaux, a 5-10 senior combo guard, averaged 14.7 points and 2.7 rebounds per game, shooting 44 percent from beyond the 3-point line while earning first-team All-District honors and receiving an honorable mention to the Class 5A All-State team.

Landry, a 5-8 senior point guard, averaged 9.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and two steals a game.

“I feel Ty’rik was the leader of our team and we went how he went,” NISH coach Todd Russ said. “He set the tone for us on both ends of the court.”

Honorable mentions include Jayvion Mitchell and Tyquan Marshall of St. Martinville, Elijah Mitchell of Erath and Kevin Ina of Franklin.