On Wednesday, Jan. 11, the boys’ freshmen basketball team continued on their already successful season with a win, blowing out the Hawthorne Cougars by a score of 63-21. Beverly now stands with a record of 14-3.
By halftime, the Normans led with a score of 30-9, but the team did not stop there, going on a 21-6 point run in the third quarter alone.
Head Coach Adam Verdi believed the team was able to hold Hawthorne to a low scoring game through a strong defensive ball game and playing fundamental basketball.
Verdi also believes that even though the team outplayed Hawthorne in almost every way, there will always be room for improvement.
“I think we can always do better, and we will do better continuing the season…we have high expectations for this team,” Verdi said.
With the team scoring over half of their points inside the key or near the basket, Verdi believed the team did an excellent job executing on the offensive end.
Leading the team in scoring was forward Ryan Manoocherie with 14 points. Guard Navid Refalian contributed with nine points as forwards Aram Modir, Jalen Sands and Brian Masjedian all contributed with six points.
“We moved the ball well and played really tight as a team even though our starters didn’t have the best shooting game,” Modir said.
Modir also believed that the team’s bench played a key role on offense.
The team now looks forward, preparing to face Morningside today, Jan. 13, in the Swim Gym.
Verdi is preparing the team as usual, with hard practices and plenty of rest, in hopes of achieving a 15-3 record.
Verdi hopes that fans come out and support the freshmen team in what he believes will be a very special year.
The team continues the season by playing on Wednesday, Jan. 18 against rival Santa Monica and Friday, Jan. 20 against Inglewood.
“Santa Monica is always a hard game for us, were looking to get back at them after losing to their sophomore team in a tournament…it’s going to be a big game for us,” Modir said.