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The Indian River High School boys' basketball team may be winless in 1999, but it certainly hasn't given up on the season.

The 0-13 Indians played perhaps their best game of the year last Tuesday night, Jan. 25, 1999 in a heartbreaking 56-52 home loss to heavily-favored Cape Henlopen.

"The kids played great, we kept them (Cape) out of sync," IR coach Pat Kelly said. "The thing is, we're just trying to bring these kids along and talk to them about doing things the right way and if they approach the game the right way, they've got a chance to win games. They did that tonight and had a chance to win this game."

IR trailed by 11 points in the second quarter and 12 early in the second half before rallying to cut the Cape lead to two late in the fourth quarter. The Vikings, however, nailed down the victory with some clutch baskets in the final minute.

IR junior Anthony Jones scored a game-high 32 points and sank four 3-pointers.

Jerry Peden, Kelly's co-coach, noted the team began to gel in the second half of a loss to Polytech the previous Friday and took a big step forward.

"The kids were gelling and in this game the kids just carried it on," he said. "We were right there, it's just a matter of getting over the hump. We're going to get there."

Cape led 43-31 late in the third quarter before Jones sank a 3-pointer, a put-back and two free throws during a 9-0 run that got the Indians within 43-40 heading into the final eight minutes. The Viking were plagued by turnovers and missed layups in the final two minutes of the quarter.

The teams traded baskets in the early stages of the fourth quarter before a baseline 3-pointer by Jones cut the Cape lead to 49-47 with 4:27 remaining. Two layups by Ricky Thompson and a free throw by O.J. Wilson over the next three minutes gave the Vikings some breathing room at 54-49 but IR's Deandre Matthews drained a trey from up top to make it 54-52 with 50 seconds to play.

Cape then spread the floor and managed to run some time off the clock, using the possession arrow to its advantage during a jump-ball situation. After a timeout with 14 seconds remaining, Thompson took an inbounds pass from O.J. Wilson and raced in for an easy layup.

IR's last-second 3-point shot was off the mark and Cape escaped with the victory. Thompson finished with 24 points and Wilson 12.

IR's top seven players are underclassmen with little game experience. Last Tuesday's effort,however, was a huge step in the right direction.

"We've got all underclassmen and we've got three role players who are seniors on the squad ... they just do their job and they're a joy to coach," Kelly said.