On Thursday Feb. 8, the Phoenix boys basketball team celebrated their senior night with a head-to-head game against the Heritage Pride, resulting in a Phoenix victory of 45-44. The final minutes of the fourth quarter showcased the Phoenix’s chemistry and passion for the game, as they successfully executed many on-the-fly plays to put up easy points on the board. “It feels good to play alongside my teammates,” senior Demarrius Stewart said. “We’ve been through a lot and we just got to finish the season off strong.”

To start the night off, the athletics department and student section came together to celebrate the achievements of the Class of 2024 boys basketball seniors, six of them in total. “[They’re] probably the best group of seniors that we’ve ever had,” head coach Jason Geyer said. Each senior had their name announced as they walked through a line of cheerleaders alongside their family members. After the festivities concluded, the gym lights dimmed as the Phoenix prepared to take on the Pride by storm. 

The Phoenix gained possession of the ball during the tipoff, and quickly used it to their advantage, putting up several baskets on the scoreboard. In the first two minutes of the quarter, senior Isaac Wong put up the first points for the Phoenix by making a contested three-pointer in transition. The Phoenix built off of this momentum by keeping their intensity high and not letting any careless mistakes slip through their offense. A few minutes later, typical starter junior Mekhi Motilewa was subbed into the game, ready to attack the Pride’s defense. Motilewa, being a strong scorer, took the opportunity to rush the Pride in the paint, drawing multiple fouls throughout the quarter. As a result, the Phoenix closed out the quarter in the lead 14-10. 

Both teams continued to clash back-and-forth in the second quarter, scoring contested layups and long-range baskets near the arc. The Phoenix consistently drew fouls from the Pride throughout the quarter, giving them the opportunity to score easy free-throws. Sophomore Siddharth Donthireddy also pressured the defense outside of the arc by attempting long-range threes, allowing the Phoenix to easily penetrate the Pride’s formation. The Phoenix finished the first half strong, ending the second quarter still in the lead 25-23. 

Both teams kept their intensity high at the start of the second half, not allowing their opponent to easily get past their defense. Motilewa optimized on the growing energy of the crowd and scored consecutive baskets to put his team in a promising lead, ending the third quarter with the Phoenix up 37-29. 

After they received affirmative words of encouragement from the coaching staff, the Phoenix were ready to finish the game off strong in the fourth quarter. The team built off of each other’s strengths to penetrate the Pride’s defense, as they continued to land on the free-throw line after each foul. However, the Pride bounced back with a fierce energy and quickly closed the score margin within a few minutes. With the time running out, the Pride attempted to stall the game with their one-point lead. With ten seconds left on the clock, junior William Beck made the buzzer-beater three-point shot while being contested by two Pride defenders. “Mekhi came around and passed it [to me] and I was like ‘Oh that’s going in,’” Beck said. 

After the final buzzer, the Phoenix pit rushed onto the court, huddling around Beck to congratulate him. “I’m glad we got it done in the end,” Beck said. The Phoenix won their senior night 45-44 against the Pride.

Gallery • 9 Photos

Sruthi Vivek

Sophomore Siddharth Donthireddy attempts a three-pointer, successfully putting up points for the Phoenix.