The Goshen Eagles boy’s basketball team heads into the Christmas break with momentum after winning the Brantley Christmas on Saturday.

After defeating both Pleasant Home and Luverne on day one of the tournament, the Eagles defeated Linden 47-46 to claim the championship.

“We came out very well,” said Eagles head coach Ethan Carroll. “I thought the kids answered. I know our legs were a little tired, but I thought they were ready to answer the call. We challenged them that afternoon to put a full game together and we did.”

The Eagles led 17-3 in the early going, but after Zack Alford had to leave the game with a shoulder injury, Linden was able to storm back.

“There was a little momentum change in the game,” Carroll said. “Alford is one of our high energy guys. He brings a lot of points and energy to the floor. That put a cloud over our energy level.”

The rest of the Eagles answered the call and were able to build up a big enough lead to hold off the surging Patriots.

“The lead we had early allowed us to make a few mistakes,” Carroll said.

Overall the Eagles finished the tournament 3-0 and coach Carroll is happy with his team’s performance.

“We are very proud of our boys,” Carroll said. “Playing three games in two days with our style of play can sometimes wear you down. We talked to the kids before we started the tournament about finishing a tournament. I thought they did a great job.”

Throughout the early portions of the season coach Carroll was searching for a complete game out of his players. Even though he felt like he got that on Saturday, the Eagles still have more work to do.

“I think we still have a long ways to go,” Carroll said. “I feel like we are getting there and the kids are starting to understand what we want out of them. The most important things is, I think they are understanding what it’s going to take for them to win this year.”

After the Christmas holidays the Eagles will shortly begin area play, and they hope that winning this tournament will propel them to more success when the calendar flips to 2017.

“We compared this Linden team to Pike County,” Carroll said. “They are a pretty good example of what we re going to have to compete with in our area. I think we realized we still have a long way to go. Still, winning this tournament is big for our program because it tells these kids that you reap what you sew. They deserved to win this game.”

The Eagles return to the floor on Wednesday to prepare for the Trinity New Year’s Tournament Dec. 28-30.

“That tournament always has some good teams,” Carroll said. “We matchup with Lamp and if we win that first game we will take on Prattville Christian. Playing in this tournament will help us understand what kind of energy we need. It’s going to be a good one.”

The Eagles and Lamp will tip things off on December 28.