On Tuesday, Jan. 10, the boys’ varsity basketball team defeated rival Marin Catholic (MC) by a final score of 66-54. The game was a nail-biter through the first three quarters with both teams going back and forth. Lockdown defense by senior Jacob Friedman and a barrage of scores from Ainsworth Fish allowed the Giants to pull ahead in the fourth quarter. Junior Jake Vasquez along with Fish lead the team with 22 points each followed by senior Johan Swildens with 13 points. 

The first quarter was very defensive as both teams struggled to get

any momentum on offense. The quarter ended with a score of 12-9 in favor of Marin Catholic. The Wildcats were playing very strong defense and shut down the Giants fast pace offense. 

“It’s a rivalry game especially with MC [as] they are our biggest rival, so we know every game is going to be close against them,” Fish said.

Both teams were able to get a little offensive momentum in the second quarter. The Wildcats were making tough shots and continued to play their dominant defense. Fish started to take over for the Giants along with Vasquez. They both had a barrage of points in the second quarter and were able to keep the Giants afloat. Going into halftime, the Giants were clearly upset. 

“This game shows what our team can do through adversity. We were down but we came out really strong. That is who the team is, [and] it doesn’t matter how much we are down, we will keep on playing until the final minute,” Friedman said.

The third quarter was more of the same. MC junior Charles Williams seemingly scored the majority of the Wildcats’ points in the second half. He appeared unstoppable, repeatedly driving to the hoop and scoring. This was until Friedman was subbed into the game. Friedman instantly made an impact defensively. Coming away with a big steal and taking a charge against Williams. This gave the Giants life for the fourth quarter.

“My biggest role on this team is to come in and play defense and guard their best and quickest guard. I feel like I did my job today. The biggest thing is that we all came together in the end as a team and got the job done,” Friedman said.

Friedman’s defensive impact was evident in the fourth quarter. He continued to limit Williams’ production, coming away with two more steals and another charge. On the offensive side of the ball, Fish was a beast. Not many fouls were being called leading to a very chippy game. Fish amongst the rest of the Giants were getting into it with the MC players. The rivalry was at its best and both teams had a burning desire to win. Midway through the fourth quarter the Giants started to go on a run. Led by Fish’s old-school post game,Vasquez knocked down a couple three-pointers. The momentum was the Giants’, and after a huge steal by Friedman leading to a layup by Fish, the Wildcats crowd had been silenced and the Redwood Student section (The Forest) was energetic and alive. 

“[Friedman] was the difference maker down the stretch in the fourth. He was going to play it down but he made some great key stops on [Williams] who was cookin’ all game,” Fish said.

The Giants take on the Novato Hornets on Thursday, Jan. 12 at home.