The varsity boys’ basketball team faced off against the Vandegrift Vipers on Nov. 29 at the Westwood Gym. Both teams were evenly matched but the Warriors were able to keep ahead of the Vipers for most of the game with the final score as 56-43.

For most of the first quarter, the Vipers only led the Warriors by no more than two points. With steals by Josh Duff ‘17 and fast break layups by Latham Robinson ‘18, the Warriors were able to keep the game within a few points. The first quarter ended with multiple turnovers and clutch plays by Dennis Meaux ‘17.

“I felt really great,” Duff said. “Even though we were losing throughout the first quarter, it’s pretty great were able to crush them the rest of the game.”

The second quarter started with fastbreak plays by Meaux and smart rebounding by Duff. The Warriors played great defense with Aarush Agarwal ‘17  blocking out a few shots, and Robinson stealing multiple balls. The half ended with many fouls and the Warriors leading by eight points.  

“Not gonna lie, the second quarter was pretty great,” Meaux said. “After the second quarter, we completely destroyed their team.

The players came back from the half with full force as they continued to increase  their lead. Robinson proceeded to steal multiple balls from the Vipers, and Agarwal made a multitude of three-point shots, making the lead to over 10 points. The Vipers tried to push their way into the Warrior defense but the intensive defense played by the Warriors completely shut them out.

“The third quarter was a great quarter for us,” Agarwal said. “I think the third quarter is when my team and I really started  to shine.”

The fourth quarter was action packed as the Warriors continued to lead the game by more than 10 points. Great plays by Meaux and Robinson made that margin even greater. In the last five minutes of the game, the game became very rough as one player could not go across half the court without being fouled. The Vipers were able to make a small comeback during the last few minutes but were shut out as the Warriors continued to drill every shot that they made. The game finished with a score of 56-43 with the Warriors taking in the win.

“The last quarter was brutal,” Robinson said. “If it wasn’t for the great shots made by my teammates, I don’t think we would have kept the lead that we did.

The next game will be on Dec. 20 against the Leander Lions. Go Wood.