The Boys Varsity Basketball team welcomed back a lineup of Alumni to play in the annual Varsity vs. Alumni game, held annually the day before Thanksgiving. What a day of thanks it was for the alumni, who must have been thankful for still being able to step on the court and put on a show.
In front of a crowd of dozens, the Alumni jumped out to an early lead and cruised from there, never allowing the current 24-25 Varsity squad back into the game. The lead ballooned to almost thirty points before the Alumni swung into all-star mode late in the game and started bombing treys from distances farther than world record javelin throws and attempting dunks (none made) for the crowd.
Varsity Coach Rick Appler displayed his frustration with the imbalance of success midgame by telling reporters around, "Hey, that entire bench is basically made up of all-league players!"
The alumni, who represented all sorts of graduation years in the 2010s and 2020s, didn't run an organized offense, but looked ready enough to join the G league, the ball flowing smoothly between players and leaving the defense lost and disorganized. At one point, Head Assistant Coach Ajit Vijayakumar (also an alum) tried to stem the flow of Alumni points by mocking a former player, yelling in a very creative manner, "You Suck!" There was no word if that verbal body slam impacted the game, or whether the specific target already knew it.
The Alumni lineup consisted of such known entities as The Caucasian Persuasion, All-Day, D-Train, Lakers, Trash of Cans, Purple Sausage, the Ice Box, Spicy White, Super Mannem, the D.O.C., Shashwater, and Ski Break. The Alums were coached by Pint Size and Strong. After their victory, the Alums took the celebration off campus to a raucous reunion at Jake's in Saratoga, where according to witnesses, the crew threw a former rival player through a window, and then set benches on fire before leaving to parts unknown.
Varsity returns on Saturday, along with the Frosh and JV squads to play a true tripleheader against visiting Capuchino. The games are at 3/4:30/6.