Freshman boys basketball played a five-period scrimmage against St. Mary’s on Tuesday to launch their 2024-2025 season. Fresh off of tryouts and their introduction to high school basketball practices, the Dons came out full of energy with a frenetic, full court press against St. Mary’s. They forced several turnovers early on, and Nick Zagorov scored the first basket of the new season on a breakaway layup. The Dons quickly jumped to an 8-0 lead, prompting a timeout from St. Mary’s. After the break, the Dons maintained their pressure, bringing in fresh legs just past the halfway mark of the first 10-minute session. Although the Dons struggled with their outside shooting, they consistently created great looks at the rim and concluded a dominant first period with a score of 20-3.
The second period saw a new starting five for Acalanes and once again, they got off to a strong start when Christian Dunphy hit an early 3 from the wing. Kiran Ouk added a couple of buckets and the Dons went up 7-2. Around the halfway mark, the Dons brought back the first period starters. St. Mary’s started to find some rhythm and hit a couple of tough three-pointers to get back in it. Both teams battled hard down the stretch, and the period ended in a 13-13 tie.
The battle continued in period three with both teams struggling to put points on the board. The Dons scratched out an 8-4 lead, but a few empty trips left them unable to set up the press that had been so effective. St. Mary’s took the lead on a combination of three pointers and free throws, eventually topping the Dons 14-10.
A new starting group took the floor and the Dons lifted the press to start the fourth period, much to the relief of the St. Mary’s guards. The Don offense moved the ball well, finding a few cutters and generating great looks from the outside. The shots continued to fall off, however, until Zubin Krishnan hit a timely 3 from the top of the arc, tying the score at 13. The Dons then got a critical stop in the last 20 seconds, which led to a Nick Zagorov layup with less than 5 seconds remaining. Dons 15 St. Mary’s 13.
The final session showed the power of the Dons’ depth, conditioning, and size. The Dons brought the press back with great energy and ripped off 8 quick points off of turnovers. When St. Mary’s did beat the press, the Dons did their best to make everything tough. On offense, the Dons continued to exert their will on the inside, with Ary Deepak grabbing multiple rebounds and scoring several buckets over the St. Mary’s defense. Dons finish strong and win the period 22-10.
