Of all the talented players demonstrating their skills during the Maine high school basketball tournament, no one showed up quite like Aden Jeffers.
The junior guard from Fort Kent powered his Warriors team through the Class C North boys regional tournament en route to the program’s first-ever state championship win. And he did it in electrifying fashion, knocking down an unbelievable last-second shot to win the regional championship and averaging nearly 28 points per game in the playoffs.
Basketball fans in Bangor and across the state found out just how exciting it is to watch Jeffers play on the biggest stage. But what’s it like playing alongside him?
“Spectacular,” according to Fort Kent teammate Mason Pelletier.
Pelletier, a junior guard who scored a pivotal 20 points in the Warriors’ regional semifinal win over Mattanawcook Academy, explained what it’s like to have Jeffers as a teammate after the Class C state title game victory.
“Just when you think like we’re struggling to get a shot, he just will find a way to get open,” Pelletier said about Jeffers. “And not even just that, he has incredible vision. I mean, I’m in the corner half the time. He’s not even looking at me and he’s giving me passes. So he’s a great teammate, great person, great basketball player.”
Jeffers made the exceptional look routine throughout the tournament. His unconventional four-point play at the end of the third quarter against Mattanawcook gave the Warriors vital breathing room in that comeback win. His last-second buzzer-beater knocked off top-seeded Caribou 48-47 in the regional final. His passing and ability to finish around the rim, including a dazzling bucket he made spinning around in the lane in the championship game, helped seal the title for his team.
And while Fort Kent head coach Chad Cyr acknowledged that it’s nice having a player who you can just give the ball to and say “go to work,” it was Jeffers’ strength as a teammate that Cyr emphasized.
“Yes, he can score the basketball,” Cyr said. “But it’s his unselfishness and how well he sees the floor, and he’s not afraid to give up the ball.”
Jeffers frequently faced double teams from opposing defenses, but he and his team were well prepared for him to kick the ball out to Fort Kent shooters in the corner.
“He sees them well and sees the double coming,” Cyr said about Jeffers’ court vision and ability to get his teammates involved. “And then if the double doesn’t come and he feels like he’s deep enough into the paint, he’s just going to score.”
All of that makes Jeffers a “fun kid to coach,” according to Cyr.
It’s less fun for opposing teams trying to guard him.
“He’s tough. I don’t know if you really have an answer for that,” Caribou coach Kyle Corrigan said about Jeffers’ ability ahead of the regional final. “I don’t know if anybody has an answer for that.”
Even when Caribou tried to force Jeffers to take outside shots, he outmaneuvered that planning.
“We knew it was gonna be a battle with him,” Corrigan said after Jeffers knocked down the buzzer-beater to take down the Vikings. “You kind of pick and choose what you’re willing to give him and what you’re willing to try to take away. We tried as hard as we could to make him take outside shots, but he kept finding ways to get to the rim.”
It was the same story game after game for all of Jeffers’ opponents. From the first round through the championship game, he was simply unstoppable. And as dominant as he was individually, he continued to deflect attention from himself and stress the team effort from the Fort Kent squad.
“It’s amazing,” Jeffers said after the Fort Kent boys won their first state basketball championship. “All the work we put in — early hours, late nights — it’s just an amazing feeling to win this game with my guys.”