Dons Nation Showed Up and energized the house, helping the Dons tie the Mats 50-50 at the end of regulation, but the intensity of the game took its toll. The Dons fell short in overtime, losing to Miramonte, 54-64. 

In the first quarter, the Dons and Mats traded leads 10 times. Fans were delighted by 3-pointers by Jackson Aris-Dumas, Graham Smith (wow – what an arc!), and Scott Ruegg (twice!), along with a 2-pointer by Aidan Bodner and a beautiful defensive move by Joey Carrillo, leading to a jump ball call. Dons were up 14-12. 

Scott opened the second quarter for the Dons by going on a 7-0 run against the Mats, combining steals and fast breaks with three baskets. The Mats narrowed the lead, and the Dons headed to halftime up 30 to 26.

The tide turned against the Dons in the third quarter. The Mats’ aggressive defense forced turnovers and threw Dons’ passing out of sync. The Dons struggled offensively, scoring just 5 points to the Mats’ 10. 

Down by one at the start of the fourth, the Dons battled back. Highlights included Joey’s acrobatic tip-in as the shot clock expired, as well as steals and fast breaks by Scott and Aidan. With 1:30 left, the game was tied 47-47. Joey delivered a basket and a free throw, but so did the Mats, tying the game. 

Overtime was tough on the already shorthanded Dons, as they lost two more players to fouls. The Dons initially took the lead on an impressive passing sequence from Shreekar Pandey to Scott to Aidan, plus two free throws by Scott, notching the Dons to 54. But fouls called against the Dons led to the Mats scoring on 11 of 12 free throws. 

The Varsity boys are grateful for everyone who Showed Up to support them, and for the beautiful a cappella performance of our national anthem by basketball mom Dana Kotarba. The team continues Diablo Athletic League play on Friday night at Clayton Valley before returning to home on Saturday to play Piedmont at 6 p.m. Be there!