Helen Cox and O. Perry Walker can’t really call upon history on Monday to help them figure out what is known as the Top 28 – boy’s basketballs version of the Final Four.

im Cenac / Houma Courier Correspondent

Cox's Greg Monroe diverts a shot attempt in a game this season. Monroe will play an integral part in getting the Cougars into the finals of 4A.

Both schools, you see, haven’t even hit their five-year anniversary.

Cox is in its fourth year of varsity basketball, and its third playing in the Louisiana High School Athletic Association.

Walker is in only its second with Brian Gibson as the head coach.

Yet, both are playing Monday for a chance to reach the Class 4A state championship game. Should both win, they would meet in the finals, making it 100 percent sure that one young Westbank program will carry back from Lafayette the big blue trophy.

“At Kennedy, we basically did everything but make it to the Top 28,” said Gibson, who coached at Kennedy pre-Katrina. “Just making it to this game has been gratifying to me. I know I’ve worked extremely hard to make it to this experience.

“We’re family, and we’re going to do it together. It has always been bigger than me. It has always been bigger than just (the players). It’s about us. It’ll be a great experience for us as a family.”

Walker will play Salmen at 6:30 p.m. Monday. Cox will play Carroll following that game at 8.

One way or another, a New Orleans area school will have a chance to bring home a title.

For Tyron Mouzon and his Cox team, the pressure just doesn’t subside because the school made it to Lafayette. With Greg Monroe, the nation’s top basketball recruit, expectations aren’t just for a semifinal bid.

He knows that.

“Expectations are still that we win a state championship,” Mouzon said. “It’s good to get this far. We’re not satisfied until we win two more games.”

But what about his players – do they understand the pressure that goes along with being Helen Cox?

“I’m certain they’re happy they are this far,” Mouzon said. “But the veteran guys – Monroe, Calvin Thompson, Justin Fairman, Taj Givens – they’ve been through two disappointing years of getting knocked out of the playoffs.”

Both schools went about making it to the Cajundome in Lafayette in different ways.

Though Walker played in an out-of-state tournament, it by-and-large played a tough in-state schedule, littered with top-level Louisiana programs.

Cox, which is undefeated in Louisiana, including two wins over the chargers, played a national schedule that included games against some of the top programs in the country. The Cougars also played on national television once, losing to Norcross (Ga.) by 11.

“That’s going to be a valuable experience for us where we won’t be overwhelmed with stuff that goes on with the Top 28,” Mouzon said. “As far as the media hype, (playing on ESPN), it might be larger than the Top 28, though the Top 28 has higher stakes for what we want to accomplish.”

Nevertheless, for Cox, it’s always about Monroe, who signed to play collegiately at Georgetown, whether it’s fair or not. Monroe is supported by a talented cast of teammates.

“For us to win, he’s going to have to play like he’s considered the No. 1 player in the country,” Mouzon said. “We don’t expect for him to carry us, but we definitely expect for him to lead us.”

So far, he’s averaging more than 20 points a game in the playoffs, single-handedly willing the team to victory in the playoff opener against Karr. He scored more than 30 points in an 86-63 win.

Since then, his teammates have found their rhythm. Now they’re one game away from a finals berth, and two games away from a championship.

“It hasn’t really sunk into a lot of people,” Mouzon said. “The success has come so quickly. Normally, you don’t have a school that’s in name, a new high school and in four years, accomplish the overall record we have. The whole body of work has been pretty impressive.”

He added, “Sometimes, people don’t quite appreciate what these kids have accomplished in four years. That’s the only thing they know. As years go by, and people look back at it, they’ll realize how good these kids were. It’ll be tough to match this group of kids I’ve had the last four years.”

For Gibson, the success has come just as quickly. His chargers reached the quarterfinals a year ago, only to be put out by Northside. This year, Walker avenged that quarterfinal loss, pounding Northside 77-40 Friday night to reach the semis.

“I think it’s a huge step for this program,” Gibson said. “Traditionally, Walker is not a basketball school. It has been more dominated by football. Just the mere fact that we’ve taken the program to this point in such a short time says we’re heading in the right direction.”

The key to the fast success has been the willingness of the players to put in the work, Gibson said.

It helps that he has put his team through the rigors of a tough schedule, playing the Cox’s, and Country Day’s and St. Augustine’s of Louisiana basketball world.

And prior to the 2007-08 season, Gibson knew this might be the year he finally broke through and got his team into the Top 28.

“Absolutely. Even last year, we lost a tough out,” Gibson said. “We made it to the quarters. We were returning our starting five and eight of our top 10. We were confident we would have a good team this season and that we could play with anybody.

“If we play and execute and play Walker basketball, we knew we’d have a good chance of making it to the Top 28.”

Yet, the Chargers haven’t proven they can beat Westbank neighbor Cox. The Cougars won the season opener against Walker 53-44, then followed that up with a 72-65 win a month later.

A berth in the finals opposite of Cox would be special. But Gibson isn’t worried about who his team possibly could play.

“We just want an opportunity to play in that game,” Gibson said. “If it’s Cox, that would be wonderful. If it’s Carroll, that, too, would be wonderful. That means we’re still playing.”