The Lakeland Cavaliers got a valuable district win on Thursday night when they defeated visiting Indian River 51-41.

“It’s a testament to the team,” Cavaliers head coach Clint Wright said. “They were doing a few more things right. We limited the amount of turnovers that we had, and we simply ran offenses and the defenses the way they were designed.”

Lakeland has not been accustomed to having large leads, but Wright tried to condition his team to this kind of situation when they enjoyed one over the Braves last night.

“I shared with the ball club — at one time we were up as many as 20 points — that this is how these games are supposed to happen,” he said. “It’s supposed to be this way, so don’t get overjoyed and elated like it wasn’t supposed to happen.”

Wright made a special point to thank his assistant coaches for their valuable contributions, in addition to those on the court.

“It was a total team effort from staff to players,” he said.

Two players in particular gave outstanding performances for Lakeland.

“Deonta Knight, of course, had a quiet 19 points, (which) easily could have been more, and 11 rebounds,” Wright said. “So he maintained his level of consistency.”

Wright also praised sophomore guard Kenya Latham.

“He had five blocks, six assists, five rebounds and four points,” he said. “To me, that’s a well-rounded ball game coming from a point guard. Some of the things he was able to do last night helped spark the success.”

Much will be decided in the next week regarding both postseason seeding and which Southeastern District teams will make the playoffs, meaning every game is important for teams within striking distance.

Wright acknowledged his team will need to win and others will need to lose for the Cavaliers to get in, but he aims to have them playing with a sense of urgency each time they are on the court.

Lakeland (8-12, 5-10) finished off its week last night at home against Grassfield.