A lot has been said about the Yates Boys Basketball team the last few years. As expected after winning their first state title in the UIL last year while returning their starting lineup for a second title run. But as the boys search for another title it’s the Yates Girls Basketball team who has played in the shadows while like the boys are undefeated to this point in the season.
The tradition of Yates Girls Basketball can be traced back to the inception of girls basketball in H.I.S.D. which started in 1979. They have never missed the playoffs since opening in 1979. The program enjoyed a five year run to Austin from 1982 – 87 capped by their 83 state title under the leadership of 6’5” Monica Lamb and sharp shooting guard Donna Roper. They are the only H.I.S.D. girls team with a state title.
Though this year’s team is young with mostly juniors they possess the traditional athletes that have come through Yates for many decades.
Starters for Coach Augbon are standout Junior Combo guard Deana Darjean, Senior small forward Trina Goree, Junior point guard Jaeisha Johnson, Senior post Mariah Lee and Senior shooting guard Chardai Thomas.
The Lions run an up tempo offense that’s ignited off their pressure defense which feeds off turnovers with trapping, playing the passing lanes and a suffocating press that looks to score quickly. Though the Lions are deep with plenty offensive weapons, they usually start with Darjean and Lee who play big roles on offense; both are averaging about 15 points a game. Darjean, a sleek smooth athletic playmaker can play just about anywhere on the court. Her ability and skills are enough to give any coach matchup problems. Lee, a good rebounder has improved her game while developing into an inside presence. She has good feet and soft hands to go with the knowledge of the game.
They also use their deep bench to expose tired teams with less depth.
“Our offensive game is to be up tempo where we’re trying to get out on the break, advance the ball, push at you as hard as possible to force you to make a decision and we look for the open person.” “We want the game to go up and down to see if we can into your bench,” said Coach Augbon.
With only 4 seniors and 7 returning juniors the tradition should continue at Yates.
Last season’s team finished at (24-3). Another great season but disappointing due to a short lived playoff run that watched the Lions season come to an end in dramatic fashion. A stingy 64-62 loss to Angleton at the buzzer left Yates motionless.
“It was a little disappointing, we had aspirations of making to the regional finals but we fell short. Our girls came back, decided to put in extra work and work as hard as they could,” said Yates Head Coach Augbon.
According to Yates Coach Augbon, their new motto is D up 290, meaning that if you play great defense you can go up 290 to the Frank Irwin Center in Austin, a place they hope to end their season with a title.
Missing up to 7 games this season could help or hurt. Yates didn’t play in the H.I.S.D. Tournament because of bad weather and didn’t play two other games because of cancelations.
“If you look at our record now we are 21- 0 other teams have played more games than us.” “As far as playing games we might be a little behind but that could be a help us from not being so worn out come playoff time,” said Coach Augbon.
Coach Augbon is in his 5th year as the head coach at Yates. He has an eye popping 92-16 record under that time frame. “I grew up in third ward, I’ve been a Yates follower since I can remember, actually when people ask me how long have I been at Yates.” “I say 40 years because I’ve been there for a longtime.” “I graduated from Yates in 1980,” said Coach Augbon.
Academics play the first role in Coach Augbon’s scheme. He stresses grades first then basketball. It’s not uncommon to see some of the top academic student athletes on the team. Senior Chardai Thomas is this year academic leader who carries a 3.9 GPA and is currently ranked number 2 in her class. “I put emphasis on not playing a student athlete when their academics are not up to par,” said Coach Augbon.