Basketball

I ache but I keep going.
There is nothing
that means more. This is
for redemption.
We lost last year.
Twice.
And the year before that.
I can't hear, I'm deaf
to everything beyond the sidelines.
Only the pounding of feet and
banging on the rim and
buzzer.
I ache.
I ache for this.
I ache to win.
I ache. I need to make
the next shot.
the next play is more
important. The last is not.
Win. What is it worth?
What is the prize for the fight?
Well, what's worth the prize
is always
worth
the
fight.


In this poem I used enjambment to emphasize words or phrases, anaphora to highlight a phrase, and consonance to repeat the "w" sound of "win."