Boys Basketball defeats Thomas More High School 62-55 in its first home game

Matadors claim a victory on their first game of the season

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Photo by Jami Lim

Sophomore Stanley Du springs into the air to score a layup.

Kathryn Foo and Jami Lim

Varsity Boys Basketball defeated Thomas More High School 62-55 on Tuesday, Nov 22. The first quarter had a slow start while MVHS was finding its rhythm, ending with MVHS trailing 12-17 going into the second. After, the Matadors were able to string together consecutive baskets, allowing them to gain a 10-point lead and end the half up 33-23.

Throughout the third quarter, the team maintained its strong lead. However, during the last minutes of the fourth quarter, the Matadors began to slow down defensively, allowing TMHS to come within three points of them. Still, a three-pointer scored by sophomore Stanley Du gave MVHS the momentum to eventually close out the win.

Despite the win, junior Matthew Lau says there is room for improvement, especially when it comes to adjusting to the new set of players. Lau emphasizes the need for positive energy and the mental leverage it provides them. 

“I’m being more lenient with the way we played today because after all, it is our first game,” Lau said. “Without a doubt, we could do a lot better. Team chemistry and overall energy on the bench is the most important thing that we need right now, [but] getting the win is the most important thing at the end of the day so I felt like we did pretty good.”

Reflecting on the team’s original plan for the game, Du also says that one of the team’s main focuses was on defense.

“[The game] was really close and we let them score too much [because] we weren’t boxing out and we weren’t talking enough on defense,” Du said. “We made goals before the game and we tried to achieve them [and] even though it was ugly, we pulled it out in the end.”

Lau expresses his optimism for the future and is motivated by the goals he has set for the rest of the season. 

“I hope that we make CCS — that’s our biggest goal,” Lau said. “I hope we can build some chemistry and build on top of our mistakes and hopefully by the time we’re done with our season, we can make CCS and be better than we were before.”