The boys varsity basketball team defeated the Sir Francis Drake Pirates in a lopsided victory, with a final score of 46-28. The Hawks were led by senior forward Devon Dyer, who scored 14-points in the game and silenced the Drake student section with a hard two-handed slam in the fourth quarter, following an incredible 23-2 run.

Drake’s defense dominated Tam in the first quarter, holding the Hawks to just eight points. While the offense sputtered considerably in the first half, they made up for their shortcomings with some solid defense of their own, resulting in a halftime score of 17-12 in favor of Tam.

“Our defense was great, really set the tone for us. [But] we struggled to score the ball in the first half,” head coach Tim Morgan said.

Tam’s defense carried over into the second half, and their offense finally broke through, igniting a 23-2 run in the third quarter, turning a close affair into a downright blowout. “We held them to two free throws in the 2nd [quarter] and five points in the 3rd quarter. Anytime you can hold a team to [single] digits in a quarter, you’re playing well,” Morgan said.

The highlight of the evening came early in the fourth, when, to put icing on the cake, Dyer jumped a pass and went coast to coast for a rim-rattling dunk. “I was just trying to keep our guys’ energy up and let Drake know that we’re for real,” Dyer said.

Both Morgan and Dyer attributed Tam’s defensive tenacity to junior Sammy Blair, who applied tremendous on-ball pressure throughout the game. Blair was also Tam’s second-leading scorer on the night, with eight points.

“I was just trying to get in there and bring some energy and I knew it started with defense. My defense fuels my offense and it’s always been like that for me. I just tried to have an aggressive mindset throughout the game,” Blair said.

The only downside of the evening came when junior guard Connor Jenkins slammed into a padded wall after hustling for a loose ball, bruising his hip. Luckily, after an evaluation, Morgan was optimistic that Jenkins will be healthy for Tuesday’s rivalry game against Marin Catholic.

“[Marin Catholic], that’s a payback game for us. They beat us in the first game of the season. It’s one that the guys are excited for. Our defense and our energy, effort, [and] intensity has to carry over,” Morgan said.