On January 22, the Bruins took on the Wilcox Chargers in a much anticipated, high octane, high stakes basketball game that came down to the final seconds. The game started off with physical play on both sides, with most of Santa Clara’s points coming off foul shots.

The SCHS crowd looked on with an eerie silence as both teams went back and forth across the court. Good defense for both sides prevailed, and SC looked frustrated as they came back to the bench with Wilcox leading 13-15.

Finally, in the second quarter, the crowd went into action. The court filled with noise as the Bruins’ offense got kicked into overtime. Several clutch three-pointers by Ronaq Virdi brought the Bruins within striking distance, and the first half hit a climax when Cole Lockwood hit a buzzer beater three point shot to give the Bruins the lead 29-27.

The third quarter established the Bruins as the dominant team, with great rebounding by Damont Hardnett, and short range shooting from Virdi. The crowd noise became even more intense though, as the rivalry between the schools increased, as spectators on both sides stood on the bleachers and began passionately cheering for their team.

The Bruins may have been dominant, but Wilcox lurked in the shadows ready to pounce on the next mistake. The Bruins led going into the fourth quarter: 49-45.

SCHS didn’t change much of their game plan, in the final quarter. They led comfortably, and Bruin fans were expecting a clean victory. That’s when the tide began to change. Wilcox started playing great defense, and was able to rebound better after missed shots.

With Wilcox down by two and with the ball in their possession, they were able to gain a rebound off of their own missed shot. They gained the lead, but all SCHS had to do was make an easy bucket. A bad pass down court from Ben Fales to Virdi put the ball back into Wilcox’s hands. After making an easy set of free throws Wilcox sealed the victory 65-60.