The bracket arrived at 8:00 AM on a Monday, and Leo's phone immediately exploded with texts from his players. He ignored them all, spreading the printed sheet across his desk, tracing the path with his finger.
Westbrook was the first seed. Undefeated. Twenty-four and zero. Their first match was against the sixteenth seed—a team they'd beaten twice during the regular season. The path to the final was clear: win that, then face either the eighth or ninth seed in the quarterfinal, then the fourth or fifth in the semifinal, then whoever survived the other side of the bracket in the championship.
Leo looked at the bracket and felt nothing. No fear. No excitement. Just the quiet certainty of a coach who'd been here before.
His phone buzzed. A text from Derek: “We got this, Coach.”
Leo typed
