Diamond Bar loss dims basketball playoff hopes

The Diamond Bar boys’ basketball team’s CIF playoff chances are quickly dwindled after a
loss to the Claremont Wolfpack 69-56 on Friday. The Brahmas lost a 12-point lead
in the second quarter and could not keep up with the Wolfpack for the rest of
the game. After a 77-39 victory over Mission
Viejo on Saturday, the Brahmas are now 12-11 and are currently sitting in
fourth place in the Palomares League.

Up by 12 in the middle of the second quarter, the Brahmas
were on the brim of taking the game over and sending Claremont packing their
bags early. However, after numerous turnovers, controversial calls from the
referees, and a couple of injuries from Diamond Bar, the Wolfpack slowly came back and
took the lead in the middle of the third quarter.

After only allowing the Wolfpack to score 27 points in
the first half, the Brahmas’ defense hit a snag as they gave up 25 points in
the third quarter alone, while the Brahmas’ offense scored 14. Throughout the
entire first quarter, Brahmas played a 1-3-1 zone which forced many Claremont
turnovers, leading to numerous fastbreak points. However, when the Brahmas
switched to a full-court press in the third quarter, the momentum switched to
the Wolfpack. The Claremont backcourt found holes in Diamond Bar’s press, which led to
open three-pointers and easy transition points.

Down 52-47 at the start of the fourth quarter, the
Brahmas had to find opportunities to score. However, Diamond Bar’s chances of winning
ended when the offense gave up three consecutive turnovers late in the fourth
quarter. The 2-3 zone of Claremont was too much for the Brahmas as they could
not find ways to penetrate it.

With three games left in the regular season, the Brahmas need
to quickly find solutions to have the possibility of reaching the postseason.
Otherwise, the Diamond Bar basketball team will have a long offseason, thinking about
next year.

—- Andrew Choi