The Galileo boys F/S basketball made history by winning the school’s first-ever F/S championship, as they beat Lowell in the championship game, 38-33 at Kezar Pavilion on Friday, February 16th.
The game was exciting throughout, as the Galileo boys got off to a fast start and had an 11-5 lead at the end of the first quarter. However, the offense stalled in the second quarter which allowed Lowell a chance to catch up and take the lead at halftime, 15-14. The third quarter was very back and forth with both teams capturing the lead and then losing the lead, as the Lions clung to a 2-point lead entering the 4th quarter
The 4th quarter proved to be the difference for the Lions, who made a run that helped them build a 7-point lead midway through the quarter. But once again, the Cardinals mounted a comeback and were able to cut the lead down to one with less than 20 seconds left. The Lions stayed poised though as sophomore Henry Zambrano made 4 clutch free throws at the end of the game to seal the win for the Lions.
The High scorers for the game were Henry Z. (10 points), freshman forward Kody F. (10 points), and freshman guard Nate L. (12 points).
“I think the game went well considering we won. Every time we would score Lowell would score as well although we were mostly in control of the game and we fought hard until the end. I feel really happy that we won the championship and it was very exciting. We worked for the last few months for that moment and it was special to me,” says freshman guard Thomas Lee.
F/S coach Mr. Lee also believed that this was a great championship game. He said, “I could not have asked for a better championship game. It was exciting from beginning to end, and our players were ready to compete. They also played poise under pressure, especially in the last two quarters of the game.”
Coach Lee then added, “This is the first F/S Championship in history and I was happy for not just all the current players but also all the players who came before and have been part of this program, this championship is for all of them.”
Unfortunately, the outcome of the JV girls’ championship game was not as happy, as they lost to Lincoln, 37-41.
This was also a back-and-forth game with neither team leading by more than 6. However, the 4th quarter doomed the Lions as they couldn’t convert free throws which led to the team coming up short.
Despite losing in the championship game, the Lionness had a great season (7-1), capturing the number 1 seed and making it to the championship game.
