Sweetwater Athletics

Still, the hoops standards at Lapwai are stratospherically high. This wasn't even the first time the Wildcats have brought home both basketball titles in the same season - they also pulled it off in 1989 and 2002.

TRIBUNE: Both Lapwai teams won their ninth state titles. How much pressure is it to play out here with that kind of history?

IVORY MILES-WILLIAMS: It's kind of a little bit of pressure. Fans expect us to win every year, no matter who we play. If we're playing against a good team, they expect us to win. Sometimes our fans will get a little unruly against us - like our district championship game, they got a little pissed off because we lost. For us, we needed that loss because we were getting a little bit big-headed, and that's not a good thing going into a state tournament. That loss, it gave us motivation, it gave us that drive to kill every team, basically, when we were down there.

BAILEY PETERS: There's definitely some pressure, but we're always going to have our fans with us - they follow us everywhere, no matter where we go. It's good having those positive fans.

TRIBUNE: Bailey, you have a pretty good perspective on this. Did you play some at Kendrick?

BP: Yeah, freshman year.

TRIBUNE: So, playing at a different school and then coming here, what's the difference?

BP: It's way different. This is just a basketball community. There's higher standards, fans expect more out of you.

TRIBUNE: It's great to have that support, but that pressure, how do you deal with that? Is it hard to deal with the pressure?

IMW: Yes and no. A lot of us play AAU basketball, so we play against competition that's better than some in our league. It's not really that much pressure on us.

(Iris Domebo and Koyama Young join the conversation)

TRIBUNE: There's a lot of expectations out here, and is it hard to deal with that?

IRIS DOMEBO: I think they're really just proud of us no matter what, actually.

TRIBUNE: Do you feel pressure? More than other kids in the Whitepine League? Does it feel like more is expected of you than at other schools?

KOYAMA YOUNG: I kind of feel like it, because they know what we're capable of doing. We always have that target on our backs, so they expect us to do our best and win the state title.

TRIBUNE: For the girls, you won your third state title in a row, hardly lost any games in that time. Do any of the girls who used to play here come up and say, "Ah, we would have beat you guys."?

KY: I've never heard that.

ID: Not once.

TRIBUNE: There have been a lot of good teams that came before you. Where do you think you guys rank?

ID: Number one.

KY: We're at the top, for sure. To win three straight in a row, pretty obvious, I guess. Not trying to be all cocky ...

TRIBUNE: Guys, not to rain on your parade at all, but it could have easily been three in a row for you guys too. Of course, you're happy to have the one you got, but when you look back on it, are you going to be bummed at all you didn't get the other two?

IMW: Just happy we made it there. ... We could have ended up losing the first night or the second night, but it ended up being the third night. We brought home runner-up. We could have did better, but we lost by, what, five the first time and four the last time?

BP: It made it feel that much better, though, after losing those two years. But then I feel bad that we couldn't get it for our seniors the last two years. That was probably the hardest part for me.

TRIBUNE: Do you have any old-timers ever say to you, "Ah, you guys, we could have beat you back when we played"? Have you ever heard any of that?

IMW: Yeah.

BP: Of course.

IMW: The team that had the 81-0, they'd probably beat us for sure.

BP: Yeah, a lot of talent.

TRIBUNE: It seems like this whole thing at Lapwai kind of started with the team in the late '80s that won the 81 in a row. How often do you guys hear about that team?

IMW: You'll be traveling somewhere and say you're from Lapwai, and they'll say, "Oh, that's the team that had the 81-0." So that's how they know it by. We hear about it a lot.

BP: Ever since I came into this community, I've heard about it. Just going with Ivory and going to games, his grandpa would talk about it, tell stories about it.

TRIBUNE: In some ways, it's kind of unfair, but that's maybe the standard out here, and could any team ever duplicate that? You girls tried. I'd say you got kind of close. But it seems like that'll never be topped.

ID: We never know. It could happen, I honestly think so. If everybody wants it, then we can do it. I mean, they can do it now.

TRIBUNE: Any of the games in particular stand out, besides the title game?

IMW: Probably our Yakama or Ambrose games. Our Ambrose game was fun, because we got to get some revenge, even though it wasn't in the state championship game, but it was just fun for them to come up here and for us to beat them.

BP: I think it was really cool playing Yakama, too.

IMW: It was Bailey's first time playing against a Native team.

BP: I was the only white kid out there.

TRIBUNE: What was that like?

BP: It was awesome, dude. The fans were crazy. It was awesome.

TRIBUNE: And they came here?

IMW: It was the first time our gym, the whole thing was full, both sides, people were standing.

TRIBUNE: Was that like playing in one of the Indian tournaments?

IMW: Similar to that, but it was just playing in front of a big crowd - like the biggest crowd ever we've had.

ID: It was like Lapwai, but two Lapwais.

TRIBUNE: How are those Indian tournaments different than the high school games. Is it more laid-back or more intense?

ID: Laid-back and intense. It's not as organized as school basketball is. You kind of get to run a lot and do what you do ...

KY: ... Rez ball.

ID: Yeah, Rez ball.

KY: It's more physical. Way more physical.

IMW: You get pick-up refs, and sometimes they don't call it, so you just play and not even worry about fouls.

TRIBUNE: Girls, is there a favorite memory that sticks out from your season?

KY: Timberlake.

ID: Oh, yeah, Timberlake.

TRIBUNE: The win or the loss?

ID: The win.

TRIBUNE: Just the fact that they were playing at a pretty high level, is that what stood out about that?

ID: They played more intense. Teams that we play, we don't have much competition, but playing against them, it made us work. It was really fun to play against someone that ran the ball just like you did.

KY: It was kind of like what they said, it was like revenge, since we lost to them last year. It was pretty good, winning.

TRIBUNE: You've all played basketball here for the last time. Have you reflected on the fact you won't put the Lapwai uniform on again?

ID: It kind of makes me sad, just because I kind of felt like I was going to be in high school forever. It flew by really, really quick. I miss it already.

KY: Yeah, same thing that she said. It makes me really sad - I don't get to ever play in this gym again. Don't get to break records or win state titles anymore - it's just done.

TRIBUNE: Guys, have you thought about that?

IMW: I'm going to miss it. Probably miss the bus rides the most, because we have fun bus rides. Listen to music, jam out to music, pissing our bus driver off.

BP: Who is our assistant coach, too.

IMW: Josh (Leighton) is our driver, P.E. teacher, science teacher. He's everything.

BP: It kind of gave me goose bumps, actually, when you said that. I'm going to miss it - going to miss the great coaches, players, gonna miss a lot about it. Community.

TRIBUNE: Great guys, thanks a lot.

TRIBUNE PHOTOGRAPHER KYLE MILLS: One more question: Who would win the game between you two?

KY: Who's got more rings?

IMW: We actually played in eighth grade.

KY: That doesn't even count.

IMW: We played in eighth grade, because they basically were talking.

ID: It was eighth grade. We're seniors now.

BP: They were talking smack, and we had to beat them by like 40, give or take.

ID: We'll do it again. We should do it again!

TRIBUNE: Why not?

IMW: We should.

TRIBUNE: Actually, where did everyone go?

KY: Yeah, we'd definitely win.

IMW: I guess they'd win. I guess.