In November, there were 750 teams across the state of North Carolina preparing to go after the ultimate prize - a basketball state championship.

Just three weeks ago, the media and fans were breaking down the brackets. There were 512 teams in the First Round, and by the following week, there were only 64.

On Saturday, the 16 best teams in the state went head-to-head to decide which 8 would be crowned champions.

Apex was one of those 16.

In November, no one, not even the Cougars themselves, saw Apex as a state championship contender. No one saw it in December. No one saw it in January. Not many saw it in February.

It wasn't until the State Tournament got underway, and really not until the Regionals in Greenville, that people began seeing just how dangerous Coach David Neal's Cougars were.

We've beat the story to death over the last few weeks. Apex started off 4-9, they didn't have their star player in Timmy Plummer, and they were sitting on the bubble for much of the season. Then something happened. There was a spark somewhere. The Cougars knocked off rival Green Hope, and then went to Panther Creek and came away with another win. Before long, the Cougars were tied for second place with the Catamounts.

Apex went from 4-9 and 0-4 in the conference, to tied for second place.

The Cougars did make the playoffs, getting the No. 3 seed from the Tri-Eight Conference, and they ended up traveling to Scotland County in the first round to take on their "easiest" opponent of the entire playoff. The Scots were a No. 2 seed, and after getting the win in Laurinburg, Apex played No. 1 seeds for the rest of the playoffs.

Apex beat Millbrook and Clayton in the Second Round and Sectional Final, and then, for the first time, Coach Neal took Apex to Greenville.

The first Regional game for the Cougars was against Terry Sanford - the team that knocked Panther Creek out of the playoffs. Apex won. Then, instead of facing conference foe Middle Creek, the Cougars had to go up against the much larger Jack Britt Buccaneers in the Regional Final. Apex won again.

All of a sudden, Apex found themselves in the state title game. And what a game it was.

East Mecklenburg came out of the Western Regional, and they brought their press with them. The Eagles' press was the best press I have ever seen from a high school basketball team, and Coach Neal said after the game that it was the best press his team has seen.

The Eagles seemed to pressure the ball after misses, after makes, after rebounds, and on inbounds plays. Heck, they might as well have been pressuring the ball at half time.

Apex eventually settled down, though, and they took the one-point lead going into the break, 30-29.

It wouldn't last, though. As soon as Apex climbed back to take the lead, East Meck came back with force. Apex found themselves down by as much as 17-points in the fourth quarter, and the Eagles didn't let up on the pressure. From start to finish, for 32 minutes, the Eagles made sure Apex didn't have a chance to relax.

Apex wasn't nearly as deep as East Meck, and the Cougars eventually ran out of fresh players to compete. Still, they only lost by nine-points.

I'm not one to talk about moral victories - after all, a loss is a loss and a win is a win - but Apex need not hang their heads.

First off, the Cougars weren't "supposed" to be there. They surprised a lot of people, including myself, and they have proven to themselves that they are capable of winning every game.

More importantly, this will allow them to build their program.

I don't care what anyone says, playing on the regional and state championship levels is completely different than a normal game. There's a lot of media personnel, a lot of cameras, a lot of spectators, and a lot of hype - not to mention, there is a lot at stake. Having the experience is a big factor, and Apex now has it, and they know what to expect next time.

Will there be a next time? Could be. And it could be sooner than you think.

We've talked about the importance of Plummer on several occasions, but have you taken a look at Apex's team statistics from Saturday's game?

The three leading scorers are all underclassmen - meaning they'll be back next season, and two of them will be back the following season.

Adam Perry, a junior, led the Cougars in scoring with 17-points. Sophomores Weston Murphy and Connor Balicic had 15 and 11-points respectively. Murphy also contributed six boards, five blocks and three steals.

This leaves a lot for Apex to look forward too, and hey, now Coach Neal doesn't have to tell his teams about a Cary team because he has his own.