Darion Lewis played like a Gladiator wearing a blue tank top on a basketball court instead of a gladiator wearing armor in an ancient arena.

Lewis, Gladiators guard, led his second-grade team to a 36-18 victory over the Tigers Saturday at the East Lawrence Recreation Center.

Lewis led his team both in the stat book and by example. Lewis scored 18 points, the same amount of points as the entire Tigers team combined, which also accounted for half of the Gladiators offensive output.

Lewis played with utter disregard for his own body. He dove to the ground to save balls from going out of bounds. He dove to the ground to steal balls away from the opponent. And he dove to the ground to grab loose balls so his team could keep possession.

Lewis may have scored a bunch of points, but he also wasn’t selfish. If the basket was closed, Lewis would look for an open man, but if it was open, he would drive to the hoop to convert lay-ups.

Gladiators guard Riley Kelley was the recipient of Lewis’ passing from under the rim. Kelley knocked down his outside jumper to build the Gladiator lead.

Gladiators guard Trey Swan laces up his sneakers before his game against the Tigers Saturday at the East Lawrence Center.

The Gladiators didn’t always have their way on offense, though. Tigers guard Jeffon Moten swatted two shots into the backcourt, using his leaping ability to reject the scoring try.

Tigers center Nathan Koehn helped out on the defensive side of the court. Koehn was king of the paint, and he didn’t allow the Gladiators to drive to the goal easily.

The Tigers kept the score close by taking advantage of bench scoring. During the second quarter, the Tiger bench outscored the Gladiator bench 8-2.

In the end, the Gladiators’ passing ability was too good for the Tigers to overcome. On half-court possessions, five Gladiators would touch the ball before they took a shot. Their patience on offense helped control the clock and helped the Gladiators double the point production of the Tigers.