As the winter sports seasons ramp up, Carlmont JV boys basketball is no exception. On Tuesday, Nov. 30, Carlmont secured their second win against the Lynbrook Vikings in their first regular-season home game.
The Scots had one win against the Serra Padres before their matchup against Lynbrook, but they wanted to celebrate their first home victory in Carlmont’s Terry Stogner Gym.
Surrounded by peers and family, Carlmont players felt more confident in their own school environment.
“You feel more comfortable here, like, you can do more here. Especially if you have parents or friends here,” said Jamison Coleman, a sophomore guard for Carlmont.
At the beginning of the first quarter, Carlmont gained possession. The Scots were then able to score on a made free throw by sophomore guard John Martin. Vikings took the lead after a series of free throws and one made basket. Carlmont was one point behind and concerned for their fate.
Luckily, after sophomore forward Zach Lefer scored a three-pointer, the Scots were able to pull ahead by the end of the half. Lefer’s shot gave them a two-point lead, with the score at 17-15 going into halftime.
“We definitely picked [the gameplay] up in the second half. We’ve got people who can step up,” Lefer said.
At halftime, the Scots adhered more to Coach Suhail Mohammadi’s advice, which helped them push even further ahead in the second half of the game.
“At the start, we weren’t doing too good, but at halftime, our coaches helped us out,” said Evan Bunin, a sophomore guard. “We started to execute more plays. We started to slow the game down. Basically stopping, taking your breath, staying in control, and not going too fast for our own good.”
In the third quarter, the Scots’ chemistry started to shine through as they worked together to defeat the Vikings. Lefer scored two more three-pointers, which helped them extend their lead to a stable 26-18 score. Three Scots put an additional ten points on the board, while the Vikings racked up four more. Scots stood victorious with a final score of 36-22.
According to varsity basketball head coach Ron Ozorio, Carlmont’s JV basketball team has a unique advantage for their age.
“They’re a really big JV team. They beat Serra, and Serra had a 6-foot-6 guy,” Ozorio said.
Although they have yet to lose a game, the Scots are still looking to improve their gameplay as a team. The most prominent area in need of improvement: communication.
“We work well together. We have good practices together. We just need to start talking more and stuff like that,” Coleman said.
Currently, the Scots are 2-0 and looking to keep their undefeated record going through the remainder of the season, leaving Lynbrook’s record at 1-1.
“We use [the victory] to fuel ourselves. Look at what we did wrong. Use that to get better and fuel our next game; do better,” Coleman said.
The Scots’ next game is on Dec. 6 against the Gunn High School Titans. Both teams are currently undefeated, but only one will leave Terry Stogner Gym with a spotless record.
