Vikings get Lumberjacks' vote by Joey Martin - posted Thursday, March 4th, 2010 @ 8:18 am  E-mail Story |  Print Story  In preparing for his second round playoff game at Vidalia, Bogalusa High head boys basketball coach Kenneth Martin heard the same response from coaches who had played the Vikings earlier in the season. "They told me Vidalia was the best team they played all year," Martin said. Martin will be telling Rayville head coach Larry Wilson the same thing after his team lost to the Vikings 90-50 in a Class 3A second round playoff contest Tuesday in Vidalia. "I know we just played the state champion," Martin said. "I don't see anybody beating them and I know a lot about 3A. They are a very complete team and very well coached." Of course, Vidalia coach Robert Sanders and Damus Smith will point to the first quarter of Tuesday's game with the Lumberjacks to let you know it's far from a done deal. Vidalia trailed Bogalusa 12-5 and looked rather lethargic coming of the gate. That wasn't a problem after the Vikings outscored the Lumberjacks 24-11 in the second period, but it could be down the road. Or Sanders and Smith only have to point to the 70-67 win over Avoyelles, who lost to Bogalusa in the first round. Or the loss to Franklin Parish - one of only four losses on the season, for the Vikings. When Vidalia is hitting on all cylinders, it's hard to argue the fact there is no better team in Class 3A. Then again, Crowley could be saying the same thing about Rayville after losing to the Hornets, 106-102 Tuesday night. North DeSoto could be saying the same thing about Richwood after falling to the Rams 91-66. Richwood defeated Vidalia in the finals last year. And Northwest could be saying the same thing about Carroll, which dropped down from Class 4A to 3A this season, after falling to the Bulldogs, 78-47. But the Vikings can certainly hang with anybody. An if Sanders says more than 20 words to his players on the court at a basketball game, you better mark it down. And because of the fact, some very uneducated people think Sanders doesn't talk enough during a game.The fact is, Sanders has already said everything he needed to say leading up to the game. And he also gets his point across in the huddle at time outs. I daresay Sanders had the toughest coaching job of all this season. He had a team that came within one game of winning the state title last year and he returned his entire starting unit. Sure, he lost some valuable seniors, but he also had some good young ones ready to step in that have contributed this season. He also had some folks close to Gary Stewart telling the 6-4 future college basketball player to handle the ball more to show the college scouts what he can do. He also had some folks close to Torrey Dixon tell the multi-talented post player to not pass the ball as much because he was getting lost in Stewart's shadow. That's hard to believe for anyone who has seen Dixon play — he is definitely the most underrated player in the entire state. He also had some folks close to Quartrell Thomas telling the talented guard to score more. But Stewart, Dixon and Thomas know the meaning of team. They know as individuals, they would not have accomplished the goals they set. And they had a person in Sanders who kept them heads level and their egos at the door. Sure, you can say I can win with that team, just put them out there. Sure, you could win a lot of games, but you wouldn't reach the ultimate goal of reaching the Cajundome. It's obvious the respect the players have for their coach. And how many high schools have shirts named after their head coach who hasn't even won a state championship? What you see with Robert Sanders is what you get. What you don't see is a lot of things during those practices in the gym with no one around or those one-on-one sessions to just talk about things. And now, the Vikings are two games away from playing for their second state championship. But, believe me, it hasn't been as easy as it's looked.