The Lodi boys basketball team went into the winter tournament at Dumont high school. The team entered the  tournament very optimistic with the feeling of leaving with the championship trophy. The tournament began Dec. 27, 2016 with the first game was against Dumont. Lodi defeated Dumont 56-45 . The team advanced  into the championship game against the host, Wood-ridge. It was an exciting final, but the Rams couldn’t hold on in the fourth quarter. Wood-ridge left victorious with a final score of 82-77. Coach Kyle had learned a lot from the tournament that he plans to incorporate into the season. He says,” We need to improve our efforts on the defense end. We let Wood-ridge score 82 points in the final game, which is unacceptable. Moving forward we have to take care of the basketball better, limit out turnovers, and have more intensity when defending our opponents. “Coach Kyle was also very impressed with the high intensity performance of the team, including Carlos Pepin who had a big impact throughout the tournament. Coach Kyle shared, “Carlos had a proficient game on both sides of the ball and did a great job rebounding the ball.” Even though the team didn’t win the tournament, their performance was a display of their potential  for the season.