Story by Trisha Chakraborty
Staff Writer
Photo by Kaitlyn Lee
Staff Photographer
Girls’ basketball played the San Marino Titans on Wednesday, Feb. 5 in their last league game of the season.
After the jump ball, it did not take long for the Tigers to settle in. The first quarter was marked by aggressive defense from South Pasadena and many free throw scores. Senior point guard Mia Leach and senior shooting guard Kayla Boozer consistently disrupted San Marino’s fluid passing, intercepting possessions and converting them into scoring opportunities for the Tigers.
Notably, the Titans fouled four times within the span of the quarter’s first five minutes, allowing the Tigers to advance their lead through free throws. In the last minute of the quarter, South Pasadena’s passing shone through, with junior shooting guard Brylee Woo scoring a three-point shot after receiving the ball from Boozer, who received it from Leach. By the end of the quarter, the Tigers foreshadowed their win with a dominant lead and score of 25-6.
South Pasadena’s defense remained airtight in the second quarter, preventing San Marino from scoring for the first four minutes. Despite a lower shooting accuracy compared to the first quarter, the Tigers did not fail to score crowd-pleasing shots. Two minutes into the quarter, senior guard Vienna Tan stole the ball from the Titans and quickly dribbled across the court to score a two-pointer that was met with loud cheers.
Another interception from Leach allowed sophomore guard Kara Wang to shoot a clean three-pointer just seconds before the buzzer went off. The Tigers scored three times the number of points as the Titans by the end of the quarter, leading 38-10 at halftime.
The Titans opened the third quarter with a quick basket, but the rest of the eight minutes proved to be slower than the previous quarters. While the Titans seemed to improve their communication, with fluid passing beating the Tigers’ tight defense, South Pasadena’s massive lead prevented them from making any real headway. Most points gained by the Tigers this round were through free throws. By the end of the third quarter, the Tigers led with a score of 54-23.
The fourth quarter saw the Tigers close out the game with continued strong free-throw shooting and fast ball movement. The Titans’ increased fouls only widened the scoring gap as South Pasadena capitalized on multiple trips to the free throw line, scoring 15 points from free throws alone. A final three-pointer from freshman point guard Jayda Nakagawa sealed the Tigers’ 70-30 victory.
“The team chemistry was very good this game, and we were able to push the tempo on both offense and defense,” Wang said.
The Tigers’ latest win puts them tied for first in the Rio Hondo League with La Cañada and qualifies them for CIF.
“This season, we faced a lot of unexpected challenges with the fires and we had many players out due to sickness,” Wang said. “[But] we rallied together and pushed through, which is one of the best things about our team.”
The Tigers will play the Moorpark Musketeers at home on Thursday, Feb. 13 in their first round of CIF Southern Section Division 3AA playoffs.
