The OVS boys basketball team picked up its sixth consecutive league win on Tuesday, and no victory was more important.
The Spuds overcame an 11-point deficit to defeat the Pilgrim School 59-56, earning a CIF playoff berth and the title of champions of the Beta division of the Omega League.
It wasn’t easy. It took a clutch steal and bucket with 30 seconds left in the game — plus a free throw with .8 seconds remaining — to secure the big win in Los Angeles.
The comeback was especially impressive given that OVS had suffered a tough loss at the hands of Villanova Prep on Saturday.
“The boys showed they learned from the upset at Villanova and decided they weren’t going to let that happen again,” coach Michael Cvetich said. “They showed the drive and discipline of a winning team in a hostile environment. I couldn’t be more proud.”
In a season where a new coach was at the helm and several starters from last year’s squad had to be replaced, it was hard to know what to expect from the team this season.
Players pictured kneeling, from left include: Orion Sundell (No. 14), Aaron Edelson (No. 1), Dante Getty-Prus (No. 25), Ray Hsu (No. 15), Andrew Little (No. 32), Renji Hanai (No. 10), and Edward Trew (No. 44). Team Manager Robert McCenahan is not pictured.
The players worked through early challenges, including back-to-back non-league losses in December, and managed to finish a perfect 6-0 in league play and 8-3 overall.
Part of the boys’ success this season has been based on ball movement and scoring. Three players, senior captain Joey Edelson and freshmen twins Edward and Harry Ying, have scored in double figures in most of their league games.
With the season winding down, Joey said he and the rest of the squad are now looking to play their best ball in post season play.
“Being the only player left from our last CIF win, I’ve seen it all in the past four years,” he said. “I’ve seen the highest highs and also some bad lows, but this basketball team has grown in ways I never imagined.”
Joey said that even though players have come and gone, the heart and dedication of the athletes this year have remained the same.
“Through every win and loss, we’ve become more than just teammates,” he said. “We’ve become a family.”
Coach Cvetich said he has been pleased to watch his players come together to get better as individuals, and more importantly as a team.
“With a predominantly underclass team, to compete at a varsity level is already a challenge, but to have a new coach with a new scheme, adds an entirely different wrinkle,” the coach said. “The boys worked hard, and have grown both in skill as well as unity.”
For its first round playoff game, OVS will host Gabrielino High School of San Gabriel on Wednesday at Villanova Prep at 7 p.m. Gabrielino High — which has a student body population of 1,500 — enters the game on a 13-game winning streak, having gone a perfect 12-0 in league to become Mission League champions.
Come out and support the Spuds!
