Down 41–43 in the final minutes of the game versus Austin Prep, Andover Boys Basketball Co-Captain Jaylen Edmonds ’27, off a cross-court pass from Zion Williams PG’26, drained a deep three to swing the lead towards Andover. Jaylen Edmonds would then proceed to bury two more consecutive deep threes to extend the lead to 50-45, effectively sealing the victory for Andover with a final score of 53–47. With this clutch performance where Jaylen Edmonds scored 11 of the team’s last 12 points, Boys Basketball (15–4), following wins versus Thayer and Dexter, moved to a three-game win streak, regaining momentum after going 1-4 last in its last five games.
On Friday night, Boys Basketball defeated Thayer 57–47 in a convincing victory that marked the beginning of a shift in momentum. Kosi Udeh ’27 commented on the importance of Miles Clanton PG’26 in this game, who returned from injury with 19 points, eight rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
“I want to shout out Miles for that game. This was Miles’ first game back, and he got us off to a really strong start, which really helps with momentum and sharing the ball. It’s really important to get a few quick, easy points on the board during the first few minutes of the game, because it really kicks off our momentum,” said Udeh.
At Dexter on Saturday, Boys Basketball again came motivated, only to be stifled by a slow first half. After halftime, though, it flipped the switch, extending the lead and finishing the game 54–48. Jaylen Edmonds commented on the team’s preparation against the zone defense and how it affected the team’s confidence throughout the game.
“At the end of the first half, we were up two points. Then in the second half, we opened that gap to six to eight points. They tried going into a zone because that’s what they’ve done in the past, but we’ve worked on it so much, to the point where it didn’t really work against us any more. Eventually they had to switch out and started going man to man for the last few minutes of the game. We had a little bit of a tough stretch at the end of the first half, but going into the second half, we completely woke up, and I felt as though we were in control of the whole game. I can honestly say I never thought that we were going to lose that game. We were always in control and just poised enough to handle any of the adversity that came,” said Jaylen Edmonds.
The catalyst of this close victory was Jaylen Edmonds’s brother, Jabari Edmonds ’27, whose attacking pressure combined with his court vision created opportunities across the court. Jaylen Edmonds described his brother’s effectiveness in the game.
“[Jabari Edmonds] did a really good job of attacking the paint and getting everyone involved. Even from his position as a bigger guard, he still found ways to dissect the zone, and he and Miles, especially in the game against Dexter, helped us out a lot. It was obviously a team effort, but I definitely think that those two were producing,” said Jaylen Edmonds.
Returning to Wednesday’s game versus Austin Prep, despite early struggles, Boys Basketball ultimately rallied to secure the victory. Kingston Johnson ’28 described Jaylen Edmonds’s clutch moments and the importance of his performance.
“[Jaylen Edmonds] made some big shots. He’s got a lot of courage to take those and everybody on the team believes that he can make them, so he was definitely the difference maker in the game. We only won by five, so those threes pretty much won us the game, especially the last one just because of the situation we were in and the time left on the clock,” said Johnson.
Following this three game win-streak, Boys Basketball will look to maintain its momentum at Williston Northampton on Saturday.
