Boys and Girls Basketball fall in first round of playoffs

The Boys and Girls Varsity Basketball teams both finished third in the Rio Hondo League and were knocked out of the C.I.F. playoffs in the first round.

The boys lost their first round playoff game to the Righetti Warriors 73-42 on Feb. 20. The game was tied at the end of the first quarter and the Rams were forcing a lot of turnovers, but the Warriors proved to be the superior team.

The Lady Rams lost a thriller to Arroyo on Feb. 21. The team had a seven point lead going into the fourth quarter, but the Lady Knights rallied back to defeat the Lady Rams 47-43.

“We played really well during our playoff game,” Junior Tiffany Chan said. “We worked together as a team on and off the court.”

The boys earned a 6-4 league record, finishing behind La Cañada and South Pasadena. Injuries proved to be too much to overcome for the Rams and their title hopes, but the team expects to be stronger than ever next season.

“I felt we did well this season.” Co-Captain Senior Nate Nuguid said. “But the injuries of Clinton [Quach] and Michael [Le] were a big part of how our turnout was.”

The Lady Rams also had a 6-4 league record and finished behind La Cañada and South Pasadena. The team believes small size, rebounding and decreased morale with multiple losses were their main weaknesses, but consider their speed, strong defense and shooting as their strengths.

The team started the season off slow and believe that they haven’t completely fulfilled their potential. However, they were able to correct their mistakes with hard work from the entire team.

“This season had its highs and lows,” Senior Sabrina Law said. “But looking back, that doesn’t really matter. I enjoyed the whole experience of just spending time with my team and being among my closest friends that share a common bond.”

Both teams feel a twinge of disappointment at the outcome of the season for not reaching all their expectations, but agree that they will cherish all of the memories they have made.

“The thing I enjoyed the most was that feeling of brotherhood among the team,” Junior Richard Hollinger said. “We all had fun and had a lot of laughs.”