There were just two weeks until Teddy’s big game at Beartown High school. Teddy had been working hard for this event, because he knew it would mean a lot to his coach if his team won.

After school, Teddy joined his teammates on the basketball court for practice. They began some drills as they waited for Coach Arthur to arrive. Twenty minutes passed, and Neil noticed that the coach had not arrived.

Ring. Ring. Teddy rushed off the court to pick up his phone.

“Hello,” Teddy answered as he fought to catch his breath.

“Hi son,” Teddy’s dad replied. By the sound of his voice, it was evident that something was wrong. “Coach Arthur was involved in a fatal car accident. I’m so sorry.”

Teddy heart sank as he hung up his phone. One of his favorite people was no longer here. He took a moment to gather himself before sharing the terrible news with his team. Everyone was sad. Without their coach, it would be hard to win the upcoming basketball game. Miguel, one of the star players, offered words of encouragement and suggested that they should keep practicing hard and helping each other. This made the players feel a little better.

On Friday, one day until the game, Teddy called the Beartown Cubs to the basketball court. When everyone arrived, Teddy pulled out a paper and whiteboard from his bag. He said that they should follow and practice the plays Coach Arthur taught them. The team practiced for a long time. When the team was done, they played a short game of basketball then went home. That night, Teddy laid in bed, envisioning his team winning.

* * * * *

Today was the big game. Beartown Cubs walked onto the court with confidence. The crowd cheered. The other team, Honeycombs, walked in and looked tough. Teddy reminded his team that they should play hard and put all the bad things behind them.

“For Coach Arthur!” they shouted as they put their hands in a pile and raised them.

The game started. Beartown Cubs won the tip-off. Neil started down the court with the ball. He passed the ball to Miguel, who scored. It was Honeycombs’ ball. Number 7 shot and made a 3-pointer! Both teams kept scoring points. By the end of the game, it was 25 to 24. Teddy got the ball and was running to the end of the court to score a layup. When he was about to jump and shoot, someone on the other team pushed him down. Teddy got two free throw shots. Nine seconds remained on the clock. Teddy shot and scored! The game was now tied at 25 to 25. Teddy shot again but missed. Neil rebounded and scored at the buzzer. The crowd went wild. The Beartown Cubs ran over and cheered for him.

The next day, Teddy and his team drove to a restaurant to get ice cream for winning their game. Teddy was very proud of his team, and so was Coach Arthur.