The varsity boys basketball team suffered a close defeat to Crystal Springs 54-56 on their senior night on Feb. 13 in the Zhang Gymnasium.
To begin, the team honored five seniors: co-captains Om Tandon, Kevin Zhang and Max Xing, as well as team managers Michael Chang and Kyle Leung. Head coach Alfredo Alves also acknowledged Crystal Springs’ senior athletes during the ceremony. After the festivities, Kyle reflected upon his favorite parts of the locker room.
“It’s awesome being part of the team,” team manager Kyle Leung said. “Being part of the team, being part of the camaraderie. That’s the coolest part.”
Crystal Springs won the tip-off and hit a 3-pointer to open scoring. Battling back, Harker went on an 8-0 run, aided by five points from Kevin. Crystal evened the score at 13-13 with a minute left in the quarter. Max then drew a shooting foul at the end of the period, hitting both free throws to make the score 15-13.
Harker began the second quarter with a four-point play from Kevin, bringing the score to 19-13. The two teams then traded baskets, with point guard Bowen Xia (11) scoring a layup to put the Eagles ahead 25-23 at the 4:35 mark. Both teams continued their offensive pace, evening the score at 30-30 with two minutes left in the half. Max scored a 3-pointer to close the quarter, putting Harker ahead 35-33.
The Eagles played with force to open the second half, giving the home team an eight-point lead to make the game 41-33. A string of turnovers allowed Crystal to fight back, making the game 43-49 at the end of the third quarter.
The final period began as a defensive battle, with both teams trading turnovers. Harker eventually cut the lead, with seven points from Bowen, making the game 50-49 with 5:24 left. Crystal then hit two consecutive shots, including a long 3-pointer, to put the score at 52-56. Max scored two free throws to narrow Crystal’s two-point lead, the Eagles forced a turnover off an inbound pass. Advay Monga (11) attempted from the 3-point line to force overtime, but the shot fell short, ending the team’s season with a narrow 54-56 loss.
Head coach Alfredo Alves spoke after the game about the emotions in the locker room after the tight loss, as well as how it reflected the season as a whole.
“I’m not too sure what to feel,” head coach Alfredo Alves said after the final buzzer. “It’s been a long season, and one where everybody on the team felt like we could have had different results than what we had. That’s been the story of the whole season—playing close games and unfortunately not finishing.”
Though the Eagles closed their season on a loss, Bowen reflected upon the sentimentality of playing with the class of 2024 for one final time.
“Obviously, it sucks to lose, but it’s bittersweet,” Bowen said. “I have seen all these seniors go through the whole season and their four years. It’s really nice to see all their work show from their career.”
The team had an overall season record of 6-18, unable to qualify for CCS.