MVHS defeated Homestead High School 64-43 at home on Friday, Feb. 6. Compared to their 47-43 loss to HHS earlier in the season, the Matadors redeemed themselves with the 21-point difference in the final score. The first quarter started out with extremely fast-paced and aggressive drives from both teams, ending with MVHS ahead 17-11. Both teams continued to play with high energy during the second quarter, though HHS slightly picked up its offense, narrowing MVHS’ lead to 30-26. However, as MVHS increased its defensive pressure in the third quarter, obtaining steals and scoring on fast breaks, it built a massive lead of 50-28. Keeping the lead consistent until the end of the game, MVHS came out victorious with a final score of 64-43.
Senior shooting guard Alex Tashjian shares that he feels good about the Matadors’ win, especially because he was confident that it could succeed this time around with increased team chemistry and players such as sophomore point guard Daniel Ji back on the team.
“We were down a lot of players midseason, so we really had to work on learning new roles,” Tashjian said. “We were a little shaky at first, but we knew we could beat this team. Daniel coming back, it helps us a lot. He plays a big role and runs the offense, and we’re a lot more focused this time. I think we’re all just getting more comfortable as the days go by.”
Throughout the game, sophomore and small forward Ethan Lin was a large contributor to the consistent lead with his fadeaway jumpshots, a skill he focused on during practice. In the game, Lin felt that he was able to implement the effort his team has put into the season.
“Something I worked on through the season is actually being able to work with my teammates, because while I was on JV, I wasn’t able to work with all these people,” Lin said. “But now throughout the season, I got to work with them and build a connection.”
Junior shooting guard Adarsh Inampudi agrees with Lin that the team played cohesively. He shares that having more players built a more positive and competitive atmosphere for the team, compared to the last time they faced HHS. Furthermore, Inampudi shares that their stamina improved significantly from earlier in the season, which was an important factor for their win.
“In practice, we just put up a lot of shots,” Imanpudi said. “I think our conditioning made us well-fitted for this game because we were able to get the fast breaks, and they got tired before we got tired. This time, the bench, Coach Nakamura, the spirit, everything was up.”
