How Parish Built a Boys Basketball Powerhouse, One Believer at a Time

With the clock winding down and the game already in hand, Ahmad Ajami clasped his head in his hands and took a deep breath.

The Parish Episcopal boys basketball coach knew the win over Plano John Paul II in the TAPPS Division I championship game last March was about much more than the 32 minutes that day on the court that secured the school’s first basketball state title.

“I could see so many things flash before me — all of the things we had gone through to get to this point,” Ajami said. “It was a pretty remarkable journey.”

Indeed, as recently as three years ago, the Panthers were winless in district play. Now they are a heavy favorite to claim back-to-back state titles on March 1 in Waco.

Ajami had plenty of coaching experience at the college and NBA level when he arrived at Parish in 2018 as an assistant athletic director, with no plans to get back into coaching.

However, he agreed to return to the sidelines two years later with the Panthers in rebuilding mode. His first season ended with a 14-game losing streak.

The rise since then has been fueled by players who reignited Ajami’s passion, bought into their shared vision, and elevated their commitment level to match. They include senior point guard Torrey Mitchell, who is in his fourth season on the varsity roster.

“There’s been significant improvement each year. It’s like we’re hitting a new level,” Mitchell said. “The hard work that we put in those years, for us to have that opportunity felt really good.”

Five of the top six scorers from last year’s title team are back this season, including Sawyer Batz and twins Antoine and Armon Almuttar. As a result, Ajami assembled a national schedule that included tournaments in California and Nevada, plus games against powerhouse prep teams.

“This is where we wanted to see this program,” Ajami said. “We believe we can play with everybody. It was a gauntlet but it was fun to watch the guys get up for that.”

Parish took a 30-4 record into postseason play in February, with no losses all season to in-state opponents. If that streak continues, the Panthers will make more history as the first school to repeat as champions in the highest TAPPS classification.

“We’re chasing a legacy,” Mitchell said. “It started last year and we’re looking to continue that. The guys we have now have changed the whole dynamic of the program.”