In Zone 4 High School Basketball League action last night, MCI Blues scored a 58-56 nail-biter win over Westpark Royals in junior varsity boys' play.

The Royals' Austin Free thinks their shaky first quarter was a key factor in the outcome.

"And then we fought back hard. I'm really proud of my teammates, and we'll get them next time."

Royals coach Merrill Friesen agrees, the team had a slow start.

"We had 9 points at the end of the first quarter. The guys battled hard, and we had a chance, with 9 seconds left, for one play to tie the game."

Friesen calls it a learning process for the team, and it begins in practice.

"To realize that when they're in the gym shooting, that they're trying to simulate games. Because when you're in a game, you don't have a lot of time and space, and we had to adjust to their tough defence taking out time and space away. So it's a learning thing for our guys to practice the way the game is going to be."

Friesen credits his team for never giving up and not getting discouraged, adding there's no other team he'd rather coach.