ELK GROVE, CA (MPG) - The boys’ regular season basketball comes to an end on Friday, Feb. 14 and that brings teams who are strong prospects for deep playoff runs into the state championship tournament in March.

Last season, Monterey Trail High School’s Sac-Joaquin section playoff run was put to an end in the quarterfinals, but this season they look to lift a section banner. 

“We’ve handled business for the most part,” Monterey Trail head coach Robert Fields said. “Guys are getting healthy; we’re playing well and now we’re excited for the ‘second season’ so we want to finish strong to get ourselves the best possible seed.” 

This program had fared well during its time in the Metropolitan League, which included a Round II finish in last season’s State Championship Tournament. The Mustangs have adapted well to the Delta League as one of the standard bearers for the league, and eyes have been on the Mustangs all season to see if they can rebound and finish stronger this season.  

At the time of publication, head coach Fields’ squad has an overall 21-5 record and a 9-1 league record, which has them tied with the Sheldon Huskies, who sit with a 16-9 record, 9-1 in league games. 

The success the Mustangs have achieved this season is attributed to sharing the ball, shooting well and top-tier talent that includes freshman Devaughn Dorrough, senior Derron White, senior Rashawn Inglemon, senior Ahzeil Franklin and senior Elias Roche, Fields said. 

White is the school record holder in assists, Inglemon is described as a potential player of the section, Franklin is one of the best long-term prospects the Mustangs have, and Roche does the “dirty work” by grabbing boards, blocking shots and being physical, Fields said. 

“I feel good about our season. I feel like we’ve achieved more than anybody thought we really could, but there’s still more to achieve,” Franklin said. 

As for Dorrough, the talented freshman who stands at 6-7, according to MaxPreps, is averaging 16.3 points per game and leads the Mustangs in total points, rebounds and blocks at the time of publication. Fields said he’s a national name for college recruitment. 

“It makes me feel good that I’m a freshman making an impact on a winning team and it lets me know that the work I’m putting in is showing,” Dorrough said. 

The talent of the players on the court is unquestionable for Fields, but the players also give credit to the coaching staff for how they’ve pushed them to be able to be successful thus far. 

“They’re always pushing us to be our best and they’re doing whatever it takes, making sacrifices like working then coming to help us to make us be better and shape us on who we are and who we’re going to be in the playoffs,” Inglemon said.  

With the end of the season looming and the Mustangs having a secure spot in the playoffs, Fields said the playoff games his team will play in as “business as usual."
 

“I don’t want to take it for granted,” Fields said. “If we win out, we’ll win league and being able to know that you’re in, at that point, you’re just working on yourself, and we’ve done a lot of work to get to this point so we just want to keep it up.”