Looking to improve upon their 1-2 record last year at the Bill Cartwright Classic, the Falcons returned to the tournament ready to face their first opponent, The Kennedy High School Cougars. The 1st quarter was a back and forth battle that ended 12-15 with the Cougars up as the Falcons struggled to get rebounds. With some tough buckets in transition, the Falcons were able to grab the lead going into halftime at 24-23. Entering the 3rd quarter the Falcons were able to play some good defense and stop the Cougars drives as the 3rd quarter concluded 35-29. The last quarter of the game was a nail biter that came to the last seconds. The Falcons had a 1 point lead with a few seconds left, but missed rebounds came back to bite them as the Cougars made a last second layup after a missed drive to the basket to win the game 49-48.

After a tough loss to the Cougars the Falcons faced The Elk Grove High School Thundering Herd. With the Thundering Herd being the home team they had a rowdy crowd that was loud the entire game. The first quarter came and went with good shots being made on both sides, but the Thundering Herd led 16-13. In the second quarter the Herd continued to make their shots as they thundered on ahead of the Falcons who were struggling to create shots. The game was 31-18 with the Herd ahead going into halftime. The 3rd quarter started slow, but a full-court press played by the Falcons jump started their offense as they locked in defensively to close the gap and make the score 35-33 with Elk Grove still leading. The 4th quarter was a back and forth battle with both teams hitting their shots and making good plays. With 27 seconds left the Falcons were up 45-43 and played good defense to get the ball back and draw a foul. Kamari Simpson ‘24 was put to the free throw line and made both of his free throws to seal the game. The final score was 47-43 Falcons as they never gave up which allowed them to stay in the game and upset the home crowd.

Due to a combination of point differential and the wins and losses of all the teams in the tournament, the Falcons played the St. Mary’s Rams in the championship game. The Falcons carried their momentum from their game against the Thundering Herd as they were making their shots and performing well on defense as the 1st quarter ended 12-6 Falcons. Missed layups and sloppy turnovers headlined the 2nd quarter for the Falcons as the Rams rallied back to tie up the game 15-15 going into halftime. Coming out of half the Falcons were unable to execute as the Rams started to pick up their offense. The Falcons still kept it close as the Rams led 27-25 at the end of the 3rd. Up until the 3 minute mark in the 4th quarter the game was back and forth between the Falcons and the Rams, but a series of turnovers for the Falcons and the Rams capitalizing on those turnovers blew the game open as the game ended 46-31 Rams. 

Although the Falcons repeated their 1-2 record from last year in the Bill Cartwright Classic, there was a lot of upside to the team as they fought hard and stayed in every game. With a 3-2 record after the tournament there is a reason to watch the Falcons as they look to make an impact this season!