Chris Deutsch is a humble guy who prefers to make the game of basketball all about his players.

When Deutsch, who is in his 18th season as the head girls basketball coach at Northwestern Lehigh, won his 300th career game, he was his usual humble self and remembered the players who have helped get him to the milestone.

“Well, when you’ve been coaching as long as I have and you get the type of players that I have had, you’re bound to have success,” he said. “Then, I’ve been blessed to have good assistant coaches who work every bit as hard as I do and more. I really have to credit the players because all along we have had players who work hard, and they want to get better, so they listen to the coaching that we give them.

“That’s really the key, even more than just longevity.”

Deutsch’s 300th win happened to coincide with the team winning the Colonial League championship in an impressive 49-35 comeback fashion. After advancing to the finals with a win over Bangor, Deutsch deflected any talk of win number 300 and pointed to the accomplishments of his players. He did the same thing after getting the milestone win.

“When you look at this year’s team, they really had to adapt to all of the changes brought about by the pandemic and they didn’t complain, they just kept going,” said Deutsch. “We have two first-team league all-stars [Ali Lister and Paige Sevrain] and I believe a couple others could have at least been on the second or third team all-star list. That’s why we win, it’s because of the talent that we have.”

While Deutsch credits his players for much of his success, the players are quick to deflect credit back on their coach for helping them become the players that they have become.

“I think we were all excited to be a part of this because he’s so good to play for,” said senior Sydney Nyce, who scored 13 points in the championship game against Palmerton. “We had a tough first half tonight, but he never gave up on us and instead, just told us what we needed to do differently, and it really gave us confidence.”

Fellow senior Ali Lister, whose older sister Leighanna and younger sister Daniella, have also had Deutsch as a coach, has a glimpse into some of the history that came before her at Northwestern and is glad that all three sisters played a part in Deutsch’s 300 wins.

“Knowing all the victories before us and to be on the team that gets to put him at that mark is really exciting and for it to be a league championship makes it perfect,” said Lister. “We know he didn’t want to make a big deal out of this being his 300th win, but we’ve got some balloons and a poster and are planning a little celebration for later.”

This is the team’s fourth Colonial League championship under Deutsch and he is excited about his team’s chances playing in the District 11 tournament. Northwestern opens play Friday night when it hosts either Saucon Valley or Pen Argyl. The Lady Tigers are the tournament’s top seed.