Varsity boys’ basketball is headed to the playoffs, and currently holds a no. 5 seed, which would mean home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs for the first time.

This is new territory for the Cavs, whose strongest past teams—featuring Eric Norton ‘04, CJ Martin ‘04, and Michael Ingram ‘06—had to travel to their first-round games. 

The difference between this team and those of the past is largely due to the presence of junior Robbie Lemons.

 Not only does he lead the team with 27.8 points per game and 61 percent shooting, providing excellent consistency from long range, but his strength provides an inside presence that the Cavs have not seen in recent years. 

Lemons pulls in 8.0 rebounds per game, and frequently overpowers opposing big men, putting offensive boards back up for easy layups. His hops and athleticism also can pull the home crowd out of its seats, as he frequently throws down dunks on breakaways.

Lemons’s defensive ability also has helped the team, as he averages 4.0 steals per game.

He was injured for much of his freshman and sophomore years. Last year’s team showed potential when he returned midseason, competing with teams, such as Valley Christian and Sacramento Adventist, that it had been blown out by earlier in the season.

Lemons has not missed any games this season, not troubled at all by a fractured growth plate. 

Off the sidelines, he is now leading perhaps the best basketball team Country Day has ever fielded. Later this month, the team hopes to advance to the second round of the playoffs for the first time ever. 

Lemons does have plenty of help, and is doing an good job getting other players involved in the game, leading the team with 4.0 assists. 

Sophomore Richard Walter dominates the glass alongside him, leading the team with 9.4 rebounds; junior Austin Karp averages 10.9 points and 7.8 rebounds; and senior Miles Bennett-Smith not only provides incredible athleticism and energy, but also shoots 65 percent from 3-point range.

Lemons’s dream is to play at Stanford, but he feels he will likely wind up playing for an Ivy league school. He has been in contact with most of the schools in the league, and thinks he will probably play at Harvard, Penn, or Yale.

Lemons has played basketball since he was five years old, and now practices for at least two hours a day, year round. He uses a strong basketball history in his family as inspiration.

“My uncle earned a scholarship to USF, and his success inspires me to get better and work toward college ball myself,” he said.

But right now, his focus is on the present, not the future, as he will look to lead the Cavs to their best playoff run ever.