Comprised of over 20 driven, agile, and resilient players, the Boys Basketball Team looks to jump ahead of their competition through sturdy teamwork, clear goals, and a productive mindset.

   “Everybody has grown in some regard…. You can go down every kid on the roster and say they’ve all gotten better. We’ve got plenty of guys who can contribute on any given night,” said Assistant Coach Julian Harris.

  Head Coach Alex Golland said, “We only have two seniors, which makes it challenging when you have a team of mostly underclassmen, but it’s a good group of kids. They work hard, and there’s a lot of talent in the gym. The sky’s the limit.”

   “We’re missing our highest scorer from last year, but this has opened more opportunities for other players to score more points. We share the ball more and work as a team more,” said Junior Ben Gavani.

   “We’ve been faced with many challenges, but our will to persevere through them as a team is what helps in our success,” said Junior Jesse Wood. He added, “Whatever obstacles we face or downsides that occur, we just use that to push ourselves every day in practice and in games.”

   Among the noteworthy games was a home win of 73-63 against Rancho Bernardo. Harris said, “To see a good week of practice pay off in a big game is exciting. It gives you a lot of optimism for the future, for the rest of the season, and for the playoffs.”

   Gavani said, “We’ve improved in our defense, ball movement, team chemistry, and practices. We’re more focused and dialed in on our goals of winning League and CIF. We all have the same vision in mind, which helps the team work together.”

   “We have continued to develop offensively. We’re scoring 60 to 80 points pretty regularly, which is exciting,” said Golland.

   Harris highlighted the team’s perseverance during a game against Canyon Crest Academy, where they emerged victorious during overtime. “They stayed together and they battled. That’s something that you cannot teach,” he said. Harris added, “There’s a lot of resilience in this group. They come together in those tough moments incredibly well.”

   “It’s definitely an ensemble team. I think [Junior] Jaeden Robley is leading us in scoring and rebounding. [Juniors] Ash Aka, Luca [Anzaldua-Bertholdo], and Jesse Wood have been anchoring the backcourt. And everything goes through [Junior] Ben Gavani… Tre [Nelson] and Landon [Carlson], our two seniors. They’re instrumental to everything we do,” said Golland. “We’re not a one-man team. We have talent and as a coach that’s really exciting,” he said.

   Harris said, “They’re a great group of kids. They’re fun to work with, they work hard, they’re friends, and they care about each other and the game. You can’t ask for much more.”

   The team currently has 10 wins and 5 losses, according to MaxPreps. Their upcoming games include an away match against Scripps Ranch tonight at 7:30 p.m. and a home match against Mira Mesa at 6:15 p.m. on February 7 (maxpreps.com).