CORONA, Calif. — If there's one thing they say about huskies of any kind, it's that they always come in a pack.

"I feel like it starts at the beginning of the season when we do all the conditioning and all the weight training," junior guard Jared McCain said. "It's cliché, but we're huskies and we always lead in a pack."

The second thing you should know about huskies, or rather about this particular Husky, is that for McCain — once he starts talking, he doesn't stop.

"People might think it's for the camera, but I swear that's just my personality," he said with a laugh. "We need energy for this team and I feel like that's what I have to bring every practice."

And so, if you ever find yourself in the Corona Centennial gym, it's McCain who you'll hear over the rest.

But that's the beauty of this program. Head coach Josh Giles allows each player to bring their unique skill-set and personality to the rest of the pack.

For McCain, that means bringing the energy. For senior guard Donovan Dent, it's more of a quiet confidence.

"Coach Giles is a big believer in that," Dent explained. "He knows how good I am, so he puts in my mind that if you're one of the best players on the court, be that way, think like that and live that life."

Dent and McCain are two of four returning starters. The other juniors, Devin Williams and Aaron McBride were part of the Centennial team that did what most believed they couldn't last season, which was to become the first-ever public school to win the Open Division crown.

Back then, they came into the finals as the underdogs. This year, at 29-1 and ranked No. 1 overall in the section, not so much.

“We talked about it a couple weeks ago, but winning gets addictive,” Giles said. "I think now that they've gotten a taste of it, they won an open division title, it's like, 'Oh, I wanna go do that again.'"

But to get to the top once again will require overcoming a tall task. The group will face off against a Harvard Westlake program that has defeated the Huskies in each of their last five match-ups, dating back to 2017.

In true Centennial fashion, the group will need to play with a special toughness.

"We've learned that no matter how high you are, you just have to remember where they had you at first," Dent said. "They thought you were nobody, so now that you are somebody, we're gonna keep that same mentality."

"I think it's something coach Giles had for Centennial since he got here, just that chip on our shoulders," McCain followed. "So we won't stop playing with it."

In a landscape of high school basketball that has become much like a business, this group is proof of what playing tough, playing together and playing for fun can accomplish.

To coach Giles, it's what sets them apart.

"I think it speaks volumes to what happens when you put the right players on the same team," he said. "Not necessarily the best or the most talented, but the right players."

"I do think that's rare in today's game," Giles continued. "We have guys that just get it. It's just a great group of guys that have talent, but they work really hard."

And they will have to rely on that work ethic once again come Friday night.

The Wolverines come to Centennial fresh off a historic win over Sierra Canyon in the semi-finals. Centennial, though, is looking to make a little history of its own.

"I wanna win now because no public school has ever gone back-to-back, so that's a crazy accomplishment as a team," McCain said. "I feel like I wanna go three CIF championships back-to-back-to-back, so that's my goal."

It's a goal that can only be accomplished alongside his pack — the group looking to finish the season the way they started — as the section's top dogs.