Sophomore Jason “Jace” Thompson was awarded Most Valuable Player of the 47th annual Jack Scott tournament after averaging 21 points over the course of three games and leading the Raiders to their first Jack Scott title in five years.

  Thompson also broke the three-point record for the tournament by accumulating 16, breaking the previous record of 15 by Cole Thaira of Kennedy High School in 2015. Thompson’s record-breaking performance contributed to the team winning this year’s tournament, but he doesn’t take all the credit.

“Winning the MVP was a pretty big honor, honestly,” Thompson said, “because it could just as easily have gone to Luke (Mason) or Miles (Lake). Winning the tournament was definitely a team effort, all five starters played to the top of their games, and then the players off the bench came in with a lot of energy and kept us to that high standard.” 

Thompson noted the importance of the team’s defense while in the tournament and said, “We had to lock in defensively. Sometimes we get lazy and let things get past, but as long as we were working hard, talking, and [communicating] on defense, it helped turn it into offense.” 

Rio beat Fairfield in round one 84-36 before topping Woodcreek in the semifinals 55-51. In the final, Rio then beat Ponderosa with a score of 66-45.

Thompson also performed well last year. He ended the season as number one for three-point percentage and three-point makes for California division two. Additionally, he was number two overall for three-point scoring in division one. Thompson has become known as a dominant offensive threat, but he also takes pride in his defense as well. 

Winning the Jack Scott tournament is a good first step for the Rio basketball team, but Thompson still has his eyes ahead further into the season. He said, “This year I really want us to win [the] league, and I know we can if everyone plays their role.” The team chemistry is very apparent when watching the boys basketball team play, and it makes sense that they have been so successful starting out the year. With the emergence of sophomore guard Jace Thompson, the team hopes to go all the way this season.