Aragon basketball completes long, rewarding season

Video by Ryan Cheong. Music by The Passion HiFi.

The ball never seemed to stop rolling for the Aragon boys varsity basketball team. After a tough Central Coast Section (CCS) playoff run that included a triple overtime victory over Aptos High School in the semifinals, the team would go on to win their first division title in 20 years with a 61-55 win over Valley Christian in the CCS Division III Championship game. Then, just four days later, the Dons would embark upon the 2014 CIF Central Coast Section Playoffs with their first matchup in the quarterfinals against the Vanden High School Vikings on March 12.

In front of a packed and spirited Aragon home court, the Dons resumed their fast, full-court offense that had proved to be extremely effective throughout the season. Aragon’s small lineup allowed them to run the fast break and earn trips to the foul line. However it also allowed Vanden to draw up a two-man game between their junior post players, Jihad Woods and Jansen Smith, who stand at six-foot-seven and six-foot-eight, respectively.

Nonetheless, with 4:15 left in the second quarter, the Dons began playing their trademark 2-2-1 full court press, which took the Vikings out of their offense. In the third quarter, both teams pushed the tempo and began trading baskets, taking the score to 53-52. As the third quarter was winding down, Kevin Hahn’s three-pointers and senior Toby Liebergesell’s aggressive drives gave the Dons a 61-58 lead entering the fourth quarter. Liebergesell, who had been averaging 27 points in his last three games, added 27 points for the Dons in the game.

With four minutes left, Aragon’s lead was reduced to 75-74, marking the first time that the Dons fell behind in the game. Woods, who averaged 9.5 points per game this year, combined his ability to attack the rim with his significant height advantage, helping lead the Vikings back into the lead

Shortly after, a step-back three-pointer by senior guard Alex Manu put the Dons up by three points, giving him a game-high 28 points. However, Manu received his fifth foul on the other end, fouling out with 1:15 left in the game. From there, the Dons struggled to even get the ball inbounds, resulting in turnovers right underneath the basket, which tied the game up at 85 apiece with 31.5 seconds left in the game. The Vikings then went only three of six at the free throw line, keeping it a one possession game, but the Dons would eventually fall 88-85, ending their season.

After the game, senior guard Trevor Pagaduan said, “The season [was] great. It’s been a surprise to everyone, even to us, and the league. No one thought that we would go this far. It’s just been really great to us.”

At the beginning of the season, the Dons were surrounded with a lot of doubt after four of last year’s starting five had graduated. Questions such as who would fill the defensive voids left by last year’s elite seniors arose. Contrary to last year, this year’s team featured only two centers and was heavily dependent on guards and small forwards. Later, as the season started, the Dons also faced conflicts with players’ academic eligibility and a handful of injuries. That ultimately forced the team to slide Hahn, who played primarily small forward last season, to play the center position. He made the transition smoothly, leading the team in blocks with over 1.5 per game.

Nonetheless, by early December, the Dons were handed their first challenge during the first tournament and made a strong statement to their league opponents.

Altogether, their small lineup eventually led the Dons to a first place rank in the Blue and Gold Tournament hosted by Jefferson High School of Daly City. During that three-game competition, the team easily rolled past its opponents by an average margin of victory of 18 points.

With their small lineup, head coach Sam Manu was able to make the most out of a 2-2-1 full-court press that Aragon had been well known for since Manu took the position three years ago. Senior forward Tristan Naicker comments, “[Our defense] is difficult [for our opponents] because everyone is fast. Everyone on our team has speed. They can’t beat us. There is no way that [they] can outrun us. Even if they can outrun us, the next moment, we outrun them. It’s just that simple.”

Shortly afterwards, the Dons faced one of the biggest challenges of the season in defending their Lions Club Burlingame Tournament title. In the first round, Aragon was eliminated by Half Moon Bay 77-66. But following that, the team won its next two matchups against Sacred Heart Prep and Los Altos.

The Dons then qualified for the St. Francis Tournament where they went 1-2. Then, on Jan. 4, they played their first game of the season against Stuart Hall, who they defeated in overtime 70-66, officially earning their first win of the 2014 season. Later, in the Dons’ first home quad against Mills on Jan. 10, they played their second OT game where they dropped 11 three-pointers. They sealed sealed the game with a spectacular highlight-worthy assist from Manu to Naicker for the game winning layup that sent the crowd into a frenzy.

Just weeks later, the Dons were handed their first loss of the season. Despite a season-high 30 points by Manu, the Dons fell to their leading division rivals, the Burlingame Panthers, with an overtime loss and a final score of 76-72 on Jan. 22. Following that, the Dons suffered a two-game losing streak with a loss against the Hillsdale Knights. A week later, the team would score a season-high 95 points against Sequoia in a very balanced scoring effort by the entire team.

“We didn’t even realize that the points were getting close to 100 until we were just sitting on the bench in the end,” says senior forward Keith Samujh. “At first, we were like, ‘Let’s get 100,’ but then it really didn’t matter. We just played a good game. We were hoping to get 100, but we weren’t disappointed afterwards. We got the win anyways.”

Video by Ryan Cheong. Music by Machinimasound.

On Feb. 7, the Dons played a fourth overtime game against San Mateo en route to a 79-72 victory. Despite it being an away game, the Aragon crowd was drowning out the home team by the end, proudly chanting, “This is our house” to the silenced Bearcats. Finally, on senior night, the team was able to rebound from its initial loss against the Knights with an overwhelming 70-44 win, ending the season with a 9-3 record and a No. 2 seed in the North Division.

In the 2014 Peninsula Athletic League Playoffs, the Dons were matched up against the South Division second-seed El Camino Colts. They struggled against the Colts’ full-court press, but then countered with a 2-3 zone and sideline trap, which ultimately won them the game 74-63 behind a game-high 23 points by Manu. In the second round, the team played against the undefeated, division-leading Burlingame Panthers on Feb. 21. Unable to get into their offense and having trouble containing senior Panther guard Frankie Ferrari, the Dons were eliminated with a final score of 66-53.

Nonetheless, the season for the Dons was quite a remarkable one—especially during their exciting CCS playoff run that attracted spirited Aragon fans to drive even as far as Santa Clara University, making the “neutral playoff games” seem almost like Aragon home games. The Dons were not only able to make it to the division championships for the first time since 2006, but also became the first the take home the championship since 1994. Even though their season has ended, there is no doubt that the players and Aragon’s fans will be looking forward to next year and defending their Division III CCS title.