Bruins sweep South Valley in seventh, eighth-grade boys
basketball games at GHS
GILROY – One side of the Gilroy High gymnasium was packed with Brownell Academy fans, supporting the Bruins in burgundy and white.
The other side was flooded with the South Valley faithful, cheering on the Tigers in green and gold.
Brownell brought the brass from its school band, while South Valley came with its cheerleading squad.
Both sides were treated to some thrilling basketball action in Friday night’s battle for garlic city bragging rights between the seventh and eight grade squads from their respective schools.
The Bruins trailed the Tigers by nine at the end of three quarters in the opening seventh-grade game, but rallied to a heartstopping 40-38 comeback victory.
“This year was the best game ever,” Brownell head coach Mike Tortorelli said. “They got hot at the end. They came through when we needed it.”
With the players erupting in jubilation at the final whistle, the Brownell fan base left their seats and rushed the court to join in the celebration.
Once the floor was cleared, the two eighth-grade squads, both undefeated in league play, got their turn to dazzle the packed-house crowd.
Brownell led by only three at halftime, but ran away with the game in the second half for a 59-44 victory and a Bruins sweep.
“South Valley’s tough. They have some great players on both the seventh and eighth grade teams,” Brownell head coach Kort Jensen said. “This is just unbelievable. For a little community to completely fill the gym for a junior high basketball game is just incredible.”
The eighth-grade Bruins upped their record to 16-2 overall and 6-0 in league, while the eighth-grade Tigers fell to 5-1 in league.
