On Tuesday, boys varsity basketball took down La Costa Canyon in a 60-53 victory. At the end of each of the first three quarters, the Mavericks and Bobcats were neck and neck, but it was Sage Creek who prevailed with a 23-16 shooting spree in the final eight minutes.

Coming into the game, LCC had won four of their last six, while Sage had quite the opposite stretch. However, coach Brandon Dowdy had a positive outlook going into the game.

“Preseason was another season and this is a new beginning for us. We enter 0-0 in this league play, so really, we’ve come out 1-0,” Coach Dowdy said.

There is always a sense of pressure when playing a hometown rival during a losing stretch, but the Bobcats were able to retain their composure through the tight game.

“We had to look past our last games and move forward with the game at hand. We entered with our game plan. Now we just look into the future and keep our heads up and remain focused on our game,” Coach Dowdy emphasized.

On the topic of looking into the future, Co-Captain, Xavier Allison, managed to step into the shoes of a soothsayer and found his teammates from all sides of the court for 10 assists. Allison consistently penetrated the paint, attracted extra defenders, and handed the orange off for easy points. To accompany his assists, the starting point guard also tallied 18 points and knocked down key free throws in the final quarter to help his team take down the Mavs.

“We’ve been working on free throws every practice, taking our time and teaching our guys to relax when they get to the line. They’re buying in and we [were] very effective tonight,” Coach Dowdy said.

On the offensive end, Sage Creek dominated in the paint and frequently flooded the cylinder making hard layups look easy. Senior and Co-Captain, Dylan Rossi, expressed his satisfaction in the team’s production beneath the hoop.

“We bodied them down low and this just shows who we are. We’re gonna take it to them and beat [them] inside,” Rossi said.

Aside from a paint centered offense, Rossi also expressed the team’s mindset going into the fourth quarter after three consecutive tied scores (11-11, 23-23, 37-37).

“Our main priority was a dub, and it being the first game and a new season, we [wanted] to make sure that we [started] with a dub in league. Really, we just wanted things to start off right,” Rossi said.

Rossi’s 12 points were a huge contributing factor to the team’s victory, and the crowd’s energy certainly did not go unnoticed in this back and forth battle.

With the student section (styled in beach themed attire) on their feet stomping for the entire game, the varsity squad was surrounded with energy that consistently gave them a helping hand on both ends of the floor.

One of the more common chants echoed throughout the Bobcat Arena last night, “He’s a freshman,” was directed towards guard, Jailen Nelson. In addition to his eight points, Nelson was setting screens all over the floor to open up Nick Sonck and Teiyler Scott.

“Offensively, he brings another ball handler for me, so when teams press, he is an easy outlet. He has really good hands-on defense and brings a lot of energy for his size at the two guard,” Allison remarked.

While the freshman guard continues to grow in his role at Sage Creek, the team will continue with their upcoming, three game road stand. This Friday, they face San Dieguito Academy at 7 p.m. in Encinitas, and will then go on to face Canyon Crest and Carlsbad High School.

“Now, we just keep moving from here and continue to stick to our game. [Last night] was a great win, and we’ll need to continue to be focused,” Dowdy said.