Boys basketball: Matadors hang on at the buzzer against Saratoga HS

Aditya Pimplaskar • January 11, 2016

Senior Andrew Ding prepares to take a shot against Westmoor Rams. Early on, the Rams prevented the Matadors’ bigs, including Ding, from making an impact on the game. Photo by Pranav Iyer

3.4 seconds remained. A long MVHS pass was picked off by SHS. With time slipping away, the Falcons pulled up yet another deep three pointer, in hopes of winning the game. The shot, which was perfectly on line, bounced off the rim and the MVHS bench erupted.

Video by Pranav Iyer

On Jan. 6, under the lights of the Saratoga HS gymnasium in front of a crowded set of bleachers, the Matadors faced off against the Falcons, looking to start off their league campaign with a victory. After a deadlocked exchange of point after point, MVHS emerged victorious, defeating the Falcons 36-35.

Exactly a week prior, the Matadors handily defeated the Falcons at the holiday tournament.

“We had a lot of confidence because of that last win at the tournament,” senior Abhinav Balaji said. “We knew what to expect coming into this game.”

The Matadors knew what was coming at them, yet they didn’t know that they’d be in for a long and tiring 40 minutes against the Falcons.

Senior Golan Gingold looks to maneuver the ball around SHS defenders. The Matadors looked to put up shots against a fairly evenly matched SHS team. Photo by Pranav Iyer.

The game kicked off with the Matadors scoring first, but within the first three minutes, the two teams were evenly matched. They continually exchanged miss after miss, and on the occasion that someone scored, the opposing team would answer right back. The Falcons’ ball movement rattled the MVHS defense at times and despite some solid transition buckets by senior Ryan Granzella and impressive drives by senior Ashween Manimaran, the Matadors found themselves down 8-10 at the end of the quarter.

But MVHS came out strong in the second quarter. Senior Abhinav Balaji put on quite the show, kicking off the quarter with a reverse layup followed by a block. Both teams progressed neck and neck, but the Matadors pulled ahead following a three-pointer and a score off of a steal by Granzella. The quarter was a relatively low-scoring one, but the Matadors were on top going into the half by a margin of three points.

The Matadors failed to move the ball efficiently in the third quarter and seemed to lose their composure in the frontcourt. The Falcons opened up the second half with a basket from the paint and followed it up with a deep three pointer. Despite the Matadors’ shaky effort, Manimaran and Balaji took charge, responding to SHS’ baskets with successful threes of their own. However, the Falcon’s offense took control of the game in the third as they went on a five-point scoring run. Granzella and senior Vasu Gupta hit shots at the end of the quarter to cut the lead to two going into the final period.

The MVHS bench erupts after senior Abhinav Balaji drains a three pointer. Balaji was a key aspect of the Matador offense. Photo by Aditya Pimplaskar.

Both teams fought hard until the last second of the fourth quarter. Gupta evened up the game with his signature floater. From there on, the teams scored back and forth in what looked like a stalemate. Tensions began to arise, as a small scuffle between an SHS player and senior Golan Gingold ensued, but upon returning to the game, MVHS seemed in control.

Senior Mark Geha converted on a second chance shot from the post to put the Matadors ahead with 36 seconds remaining in the game. The Falcons went on to call two timeouts in the following ten seconds in an attempt to formulate a last-ditch attempt, but their plans were foiled as a turnover led to Geha getting fouled. Geha drained two crucial free throws, putting the Matadors up by four with ten seconds remaining.

“Mark really iced those free throws,” head coach Clay Stiver said. Senior Golan Gingold looks to maneuver the ball against an SHS defender. The Matador ball movement, though shaky at times, was lethal when it was successful. Photo by Pranav Iyer.“I was kind of nervous about that but he freaking put it up.”

But SHS refused to go out without a fight. On the following possession, the Falcons scored on a deep three pointer to cut the Matador lead to one. The final four seconds consisted of high hopes coupled with nail-biting suspense. SHS picked off a pass by the Matadors and pushed the ball up the court for one final attempt. The Falcons missed their attempt at a game-winning buzzer beater as MVHS came out on top 36-35 to start their season with a 1-0 league record.

Though the Matadors edged out a victory, Stiver explained that the team has yet to grow to its potential.

“We’re still waiting for that time where everybody has a good game at once. When we all are on the same page, doing the right things,” Stiver said. “I think it’s good for us that we can still win when we play a 75 percent game. It shows the potential we have. It’s up to us as to when we want to do it.”