The boys basketball team started their season off strong with a huge 77-55 win against the Willow Glen Rams on Wednesday night. After an impressive 21-8 record last year, the Bears are trying to continue that momentum this season.
After winning the tip off, the Bears dashed down the court, and started the game off strong. After a missed shot, junior Jerry Williams got the offensive rebound and put it back up for their first score of the game.
The Rams had a response for almost every point, keeping the Bears’ defense on edge. “The first quarter was rough for us as a team. We lacked energy and let them score more than we should have,” senior Trevor Cadigan said.
Though junior Jacob Sutton and Williams silenced the Rams’ rowdy bench by making back-to-back three-pointers. The first quarter ended with M-A leading 24-17.
The Bears kicked off the second quarter with intensity, forcing bad passes and turnovers on defense. But, they couldn’t capitalize on offense and missed their next six three-pointer attempts.
The Bears continued to attack the basket, getting multiple rebounds and putting back up. “We were able to get a lot of rebound, and got lots of our points off that,” junior Aiden Atkins said.
Nearing the end of the half, Winters found Atkins under the hoop, who leapt up into the air and dunked on a Rams defender. The Bears entered halftime with a hefty 44-30 lead.
The Bears struggled to continue their momentum in the second half and called an early timeout after multiple turnovers.
However, M-A quickly bounced back with a surge of energy off a forced turnover by Atkins, and Williams soon after found Cadigan for an open three-pointer.
The Bears’ offense came back to full strength in the final quarter. After just a few seconds, senior Bobby Redmond made a tough contested shot with defenders in his face. The Bears defense continued to step up without fail Redmond deflected the Rams’ pass to Cadigan, who bolted down the court for an easy layup.
The Bears kept making baskets, further extending their lead to 64-48. Williams stole the ball and made a quick pass to Atkins, who went up for a layup and was fouled, and made the and-one.
Willow Glen continued to fight back, knocking down open shots, but the Bears kept extending the point difference.
With time running out, the Rams needed a big push on offense and defense, but senior Ali Goker had other plans. Hustling all over the court, Goker took both charges and steals on defense and shooting impressive layups and free throws on offense. As the clock ran down, Willow Glen threw up desperation shots but failed to catch up, giving M-A their 77-55 season opener victory.
“As the season progresses we will have better chemistry allowing us to excel as a team and show our full potential,” Cadigan said after the game.
“We work well as a team but at times we struggled with our shooting,” Williams added.
