andrewlin Tue Jan 12, 2010 12:07 pmWhile the rest of us were probably in bed or vegetating over winter break, the Boys Varsity Basketball team was out doing work. The day after Christmas, the team participated in the first round of the La Salle/Temple City Holiday Classic tournament and quickly defeated the St. Paul Swordsmen in a tidy 78-52. According to Coach Jay Ryan, winning the game rested on their ability to play “up-tempo.” He explained, “We are probably the smallest team in league, so we have to really be scrappy, play fundamental defense, and be in great rebounding position to make up for our lack of height.” As the team proceeded through the tournament, however, they fell short of a victory in their games against Keppel, 73-75, and Temple City, 60-66.
But the La Salle/Temple City Holiday Classic was for practice anyway—when the season began with their game against Hoover, the Apaches won 68-67 and set a precedent for the rest of the year. “The game against Hoover was one that tested us on our execution of plays down the stretch,” said senior Ashiq Syed. “Being down 64-68 with 30 seconds left in the game is not exactly a position we wanted to be in, but we came out of a timeout determined to finish off the game. Kiran carried us to the win with a quick two and then followed up a defensive stop with a three-point play to seal the game.”
The team, however, will not always be able to count on a last minute miracle play from junior Kiran Koneru. Coach Ryan expressed his concern over the events of the Hoover game when he said, “Our lack of focus was evident in the Hoover game. We drifted and we didn't defend well or share the basketball well and struggled the rest of the game.”
On Jan. 8, the Apaches squared off against Pasadena. We tried and came up short 70-33. According to Coach Ryan, “They dictated the game offensively and dictated the game defensively. They spanked us, up and down the court.” The majority of the team struggled as no single person scored more than five points each, the lone exception being sophomore Taylor Lagace, who scored 12 points.
And so armed with the lessons they learned from the Pasadena game, the Apaches stomped Burbank _____ to _______ on Jan. 11. Looking back on the game, senior Franky Yan reflected, “Burbank is known for being a physical, talented team that brings nothing but competitiveness on the court, so it was a big win for us to show them that we're just as talented, if not more.”
But time with the team isn’t all reviewing game plays and training in the weight room. Franky Yan then went on to describe a particularly fond memory, “We went to UCSB to attend a basketball camp, and there were teams from all across the United States, as well as Europe. Being in Santa Barbara not only put us in a beachy, relaxed surrounding, but also allowed us to bond off court. At night we would go out and have team dinners at local restaurants, and afterwards some of us would go shopping at State Street or just enjoy meeting ‘fee-fee's,’ which is the team’s term for attractive females. One of the funniest moments was when one of our coaches met a fine lady who was about to give him her number, but our team swarmed her and so prevented her from giving him her number.”
But the La Salle/Temple City Holiday Classic was for practice anyway—when the season began with their game against Hoover, the Apaches won 68-67 and set a precedent for the rest of the year. “The game against Hoover was one that tested us on our execution of plays down the stretch,” said senior Ashiq Syed. “Being down 64-68 with 30 seconds left in the game is not exactly a position we wanted to be in, but we came out of a timeout determined to finish off the game. Kiran carried us to the win with a quick two and then followed up a defensive stop with a three-point play to seal the game.”
The team, however, will not always be able to count on a last minute miracle play from junior Kiran Koneru. Coach Ryan expressed his concern over the events of the Hoover game when he said, “Our lack of focus was evident in the Hoover game. We drifted and we didn't defend well or share the basketball well and struggled the rest of the game.”
On Jan. 8, the Apaches squared off against Pasadena. We tried and came up short 70-33. According to Coach Ryan, “They dictated the game offensively and dictated the game defensively. They spanked us, up and down the court.” The majority of the team struggled as no single person scored more than five points each, the lone exception being sophomore Taylor Lagace, who scored 12 points.
And so armed with the lessons they learned from the Pasadena game, the Apaches stomped Burbank _____ to _______ on Jan. 11. Looking back on the game, senior Franky Yan reflected, “Burbank is known for being a physical, talented team that brings nothing but competitiveness on the court, so it was a big win for us to show them that we're just as talented, if not more.”
But time with the team isn’t all reviewing game plays and training in the weight room. Franky Yan then went on to describe a particularly fond memory, “We went to UCSB to attend a basketball camp, and there were teams from all across the United States, as well as Europe. Being in Santa Barbara not only put us in a beachy, relaxed surrounding, but also allowed us to bond off court. At night we would go out and have team dinners at local restaurants, and afterwards some of us would go shopping at State Street or just enjoy meeting ‘fee-fee's,’ which is the team’s term for attractive females. One of the funniest moments was when one of our coaches met a fine lady who was about to give him her number, but our team swarmed her and so prevented her from giving him her number.”