Despite holding a five-point lead through three quarters, the New Iberia Senior High School Yellow Jackets were unable to outlast a talented Lafayette Renaissance Charter team, falling to the Tigers, 60-55, to move to 1-1 on the season. 

The matchup was a back-and-forth affair through the first quarter, with NISH taking a 13-8 lead in the first quarter and both teams scoring 14 more points before the half. Each team added 17 points in the third quarter, but tactical changes from Tigers head coach Brad Boyd were able to make the difference as LRCH forced seven turnovers in the final quarter of play. 

“Our big man had four or five fouls, so we had to go all guards,” Boyd explained. “We were trying the 2-2-1 trap a lot and right at the end we switched back to man-to-man and kind of jumped the guys and got a couple key turnovers at the end. We were so stagnant tonight and we’re coming from scoring 60, 70 points in the jamborees and scrimmages, but that’s what NISH does. This is the first time that I’ve beaten NISH in a long time as a head basketball coach.”

First-year Yellow Jackets head coach Colby Batiste said the blame for the team’s faults lie with him. 

“We just have to do better, I have to do better,” Batiste said. “We’ve been harping on starting the quarters right and starting the halves right, but that’s our Achilles’ heel. That’s all on me. I think I could have put my guys in a better position. We had seven turnovers in the fourth quarter and nine in the whole first half, so we weren’t consistent throughout the game.”

LRCH’s 21-point performance in the fourth quarter was led by junior PG Matthew Gordon, who scored 11 points in the final period and ended the game with 26 points. Jontavon Etienne (13 points), Tavion Gallien (11 points) and Tahj Domingue (8 points) also contributed to the win. 

Leading the scoring for NISH was junior Myles Jones with 23 points. Batiste praised Jones’ performance against LRCH, but added that he needs the rest of his team to step up their offensive production.

“I’m very pleased with him. That’s a kid who quit basketball over the summer,” Batiste said. “He was going to just play baseball, and for him to come out and sacrifice for the team shows great effort. We have to find a way to get the other guys involved, we can’t just have one guy scoring.”

The NISH roster is led by seniors Khaleb Fusilier and Devin Frank. Frank, who played several minutes at guard under former head coach Chad Pourciau, will be expected to use his height and big-game experience in a more varied role this season. 

The rest of the team will need to adapt to the varsity level quickly, something Batiste said is moving along well at the start of the season.  

“They’re progressing well. A lot of these guys are first time varsity guys, with the exception of Khalib Fusilier and Devin Frank,” he said. “Having the guys in the right spots and getting them in the right places at the right times so they can execute the right way of the goal. To this point, I think they’re all doing a decent job.”

Frank ended the game with 11 points, Fusilier had six and Shane Westley had nine. 

Even though Tuesday’s game didn’t go NISH’s way, there were still plenty of positives to take back to New Iberia. After years of matchups against former NISH coaches Todd Russ and Chad Pourciau, Brad Boyd said that the program is in good hands with Batiste. 

“Colby did a great job, those guys are still playing good defense and communicating well,” Boyd said. “They only dressed eight or nine dudes but they’re all team players. Colby played college basketball, he’s going to do a good job at NISH and just needs to keep developing the players. Russ and Chad had some good players, but those guys have graduated now so it’s going to be up to Colby to develop those guys and help them along the way.”

For Batiste, the development begins with a grueling non-district schedule that pits NISH against some of the toughest teams in the state. 

“It’s a gauntlet,” Batiste said of the team’s schedule this season. “I inherited the schedule from Chad and this is probably the easiest game that we’re going to have. New Iberia has always had a basketball culture based on toughness and not shying away from any competition. We want to play against the best because we’re preparing our kids to become the best. The only way you get there is through adversity, like tonight.”