With the clock winding down, junior Caleb Clark shot the ball from nearly half-court. His long shot went in, and the crowd erupted into cheers as the men’s varsity basketball team narrowed the score of the fourth section to 22–19.
GDS played its second preseason scrimmage against St. Albans School on Nov. 15. Because the game was a scrimmage, it was divided into five sections instead of the usual four quarters. Each section was eight minutes instead of the regular season’s standard ten, and the scoreboard was reset after each section. They won the first section 10–8 but lost the next four sections 23–12, 12–9, 22–19 and 11–6.
GDS schedules preseason scrimmages hoping to learn by measuring themselves up to other local teams and seeing how their practice translates into the game setting, according to assistant coach David Dodson.
“We have a team of players that we think are pretty smart basketball players,” head coach Alpha Bangura said. “We have a system that requires a lot of patience, a lot of poise, and guys are still learning to trust that offense. When we start to really trust it, we’ll have a lot more success.”
Dodson added that part of the system is recognizing the flashy play isn’t always the right one. “Taking a lot of long shots—that’s where the discipline part comes in,” he said. “You could’ve had someone who was open who had a better, higher-percentage shot. We try not to have it in our regular offense.”
In the first section, St. Albans won the tipoff, but GDS applied suffocating defense from the start, forcing turnovers, fighting for rebounds and preventing transition points. Both teams drew several fouls outside the paint but struggled to convert those fouls into real scoring opportunities.
Finally, St. Albans scored the first two points of the game off a pair of free throws but GDS drained two three pointers to gain an early 6–2 lead.
GDS held onto their lead by continuing to apply defensive pressure, preventing St. Albans from getting easy looks. However, St. Albans tied the game at 8–8 with a put-back shot. GDS made another shot to gain a 10–8 lead, and another forced turnover from Clark sealed GDS’ 10–8 win in the first section.
GDS got off to a fast start in the second section, with a 5–0 lead. St. Albans called a timeout and went on an 8–0 run immediately after, giving St. Albans an 8–5 lead. GDS intercepted a pass and made another layup in transition to cut the lead to 10–7.
Both teams forced several turnovers, sometimes converting them to points, but St. Albans’ early run allowed them to seal a 23–12 win in the second section.
The third section was competitive from the jump, with both teams continuing their gritty defense. McManus blocked a shot, caught the ball, dribbled down the court and passed to junior Arjun Bhargava. Bhargava was fouled and made both free throws, giving GDS a 2–0 lead. St. Albans won the third section, 12–9.
St. Albans opened the fourth section with a three after the teams traded possession. GDS and St. Albans continued to trade baskets, holding a 13–9 lead. St. Albans made several quick shots off steals, extending their lead to 18–9.
GDS, however, refused to let St. Albans take over the section. The team found a way to create open shots without sacrificing their defense. Clark ended the section with a half-court shot at the buzzer, but GDS lost 22–19.
In the fifth section, both teams opened with layups to even the score at 2–2. St. Albans scored off the subsequent inbounds pass to spark a 7–0 scoring run. GDS cut the lead to 9–4 by grabbing a rebound and scoring in transition before both teams traded baskets. The fifth section ultimately ended at 11–6.
The team scrimmaged Model Secondary School for The Deaf on Nov. 14. Bangura said playing two games in a row was a challenge, both physically and mentally. “We came off an easier win yesterday,” Bangura said. “The biggest thing is not being satisfied with what we did yesterday and trying to prepare for the unexpected.
Senior co-captain Khalin Patel said the team needed to focus on the small details. “They put a lot of pressure on us with the ball and on defense,” he said. “We just got to work on not picking up our dribble and being strong with the ball.”
However, Patel said he thought the team played well. “I thought we came in and showed a good amount of energy and were competitive from the start,” he said. “We are undersized, but I thought we put up a good fight.
Dodson said the scrimmage allowed the team to click into focus. “I think with this scrimmage we showed what we are capable of doing and what we need to do,” he said. “It was a good test of what we need to look forward to with the season.”