By Lisa Soileaux

Assistant Editor

Hopes were high Tuesday as the Rayne High Wolves traveled to Green Oaks for the regional round of the 2011 basketball playoffs. But the ride home was less enthusiatic as the Giants nabbed a 74-70 win in a close contest.

“No matter the outcome, I’m proud of our guys,” states Rayne High Head Coach Louis Handy of the regional loss. “Overall, these kids fought well and hard, and went out there where they put their soul and heart into the game. They left it all on the court.”

A somewhat fixture in post-season play, Handy is not one to make observations of a calling crew, but he questions Tuesday’s contest.

“Idon;t consider myself an official jumper, but it was one of those nights -- you just can’t put your finger on it,” continues Handy. “We walked into the gym with a positive attitude. But after observing the surroundings, we knew the game was going to be an uphill battle.”

The first quarter of play saw Green Oaks just ahead of the Wolves 13-12 as the buzzer sounded.

Following a few miscues, Rayne continued to trail into the halftime break, 29-24.

Both teams blasted out of the locker room, the Giants scoring 27 points in the third quarter compared to Rayne’s 22.

Down as much as 13 points, the Wolves got back into the ballgame, coming within a single point. But Green Oaks pulled out a 28-point final quarter for the 74-70 win.

“Our guys played hard, battled back and I’m really proud of them,” noted Coach Handy of Tuesday’s regional round loss. “This year’s team might not have had the fire power as past teams, but they had the willpower.”

“This is a good group of kids,” concludes Handy of his team. “It’s just a shame it had to end like this, and not just on the scoreboard.”

Leading the Wolves Tuesday were Ryan Larry and Darius Bonnom with 21 and 20 points, respectively. Rounding out the Rayne scoring were Michael Henry with 11, Hunter Prejean 6, Dannie Harmon 5, Freddie Broussard 4 and Ian Papillion 2.