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Defending in the post, senior Bjorn Ryning extends his arm in the air.

All year long, the Giants’ offensive approach has consisted of suffocating opponents with a fast pace of play and getting the ball to senior Jake Vasquez. Tonight was no different. Vasquez scored 23 points, the game-high, leading Redwood to a 56-44 victory over the Tamalpais (Tam) Red Hawks. Redwood pushed the pace for the entirety of the game, finding easy layups in transition and tiring out the Red Hawks to eventually dominate the second half.
Coming into the game, Tam sat in third place at 4-1 in the Marin County Athletic League (MCAL) standings, and Redwood was half a game back in fourth at 4-2. With three games remaining in league play for Tam and just two for Redwood, playoff implications were incredibly high. Tam came in red-hot, having won six out of their last seven games, with their only loss coming in a blowout against star-studded Branson. On the other hand, Redwood looked to pick up their third win in a row after victories over Novato and San Marin.
With strong interior defense from senior Bjorn Ryning and steals from juniors Tyler White and Mason Garbo, the Giants were able to overcome a 32-27 deficit at halftime, holding Tam to only three points in the third quarter. Redwood held the Red Hawks scoreless for the first seven minutes of the quarter, with the drought finally ending on a second-effort three-point shot. On the other end, Vasquez led the Giants, scoring seven points in the quarter, with junior Brennan Woodley contributing a clutch three-pointer.
Into the fourth quarter, Vasquez’s dominant night continued, beating Red Hawk defenders in the paint and finding multiple trips to the rim. Senior Gil Ladetzky was another strong force late in the game, securing multiple offensive rebounds as well as drilling a corner three.
But early on, things weren’t so easy for the Giants. The Red Hawks came out with very high energy, smothering Redwood’s inside chances with multiple blocks and steals, leading to easy buckets on the other end. Coach Jay DeMaestri was forced to call a timeout with the Giants losing 13-8 in order to calm his team down. As he did all night long, Vasquez came out of the timeout with a tough layup, putting the Giants right back in the game and shifting the momentum. On the sideline, DeMaestri emphasized pushing the ball upcourt and outrunning the Red Hawks, which they continued to do throughout the second quarter. Woodley and Ladetzky were able to find easy three-pointers by sneaking out and being found for an outlet pass in transition. However, by the end of the second quarter, their pace became too fast, missing layups and turning the ball over by moving too quickly. The Red Hawks were able to capitalize and make a three-pointer, giving them a 32-27 lead going into the half.
But with the Red Hawks tired in the second half, they were unable to keep up with the Giants and their fast pace of play.
“This is my house, I didn’t come here to lose,” DeMaestri said after the game.
Woodley was the second-highest scorer for the Giants with 11 points, and senior Lachlan Kelly added six of his own. Senior Auvin Cole challenged the Giants, scoring 14 points for the Red Hawks. The Giants look to build on their three-game winning streak with their senior day matchup at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 1 against Archie Williams, their final MCAL game. A win could propel them as high as the two-seed going into the MCAL playoffs.