Just short of CIF Quarterfinals

Johnny Wang, Asst. Sports Editor|February 13, 2019

In an  underwhelming CIF match between rival schools Diamond Bar and Walnut, the Brahmas fell to the Mustangs yet again, 54-30.

The game started off slowly offensively, with both teams having trouble scoring easy open jumpers and layups. Senior Mike Gao stepped up and anchored down the Brahma defense, giving the Mustangs a hard time when attacking the rim.

Through Gao, the team played outstanding  zone defense to lock down any Walnut attempts to drive, forcing them to miss all their field goal attempts at the perimeter. However, the Brahma defense had a few weak spots, putting those Walnut players who did get through on the foul line. The careless fouls killed the Brahma’s momentum, allowing Walnut to get all their points from easy free throws and finish the first ahead, 8-4.

Entering the second quarter, the Brahmas were still frozen cold: seniors Myles Corey, Amir Hunter, and Gavin Clements went  1-9 from threes. The team struggled with its passing as the Brahmas accumulating 19 turnovers in the entire game. The Brahmas were reluctant to take the layup for themselves, always throwing the ball away and losing their transition points.

However, after a few Mustang points, Corey brought life back to the Brahma crowd with a long range three to bring the score to 17-7. With 4 minutes left in the half, Corey led the Brahmas on a 4-0 run but was quickly outscored when the Mustangs answered back with a 6-0 run themselves. The second quarter ended with Corey and Gao as the only Brahmas to have scored and Brahmas down, 20-11.

In the third quarter, the Mustangs broke away from their 9 point lead. The Brahma defense started slacking, allowing several drive attempts. This made it easier for the Mustangs to break down the defense and run their offensive plays to get open looks. Corey was the only one who contributed on the offensive end in the third quarter. The team didn’t find their shooting rhythm and was left in the dust, 40-19.

The fourth quarter was the same, with the Brahmas falling further  behind as the Mustangs dragged ahead. Though the Brahmas were down 20, they still fought hard until the end. Corey scored 26 points in the quarter, Gao had 9 blocks as well as 9 rebounds, and Reyes grabbed 9 rebounds. The game ended as a disappointing lost for the Brahmas.