The boys JV Gold basketball team won 37-64 against Forney at home on Jan. 28. 

This was the second time the team has faced Forney. Earlier, on Jan. 4, they won with 72 points versus Forney’s 42. 

The game started with sophomore Jordan Stribling winning the tip off. Junior Bartu Sevil made the first basket, giving the team a 0-2 lead. 

“Jordan’s been a constant kind of X factor on our team with his length and his ability to dominate the inside with his scoring and rebounding,” coach Carter Bien said. 

During the first quarter, the team’s defense held firm and barely let Forney score. Their defensive strategy was formed through watching the film back from the team’s first game against Forney.

“We made sure to not let the same people last time that made threes shoot anymore this time,” Stribling said.

The first quarter ended with JV Gold in the lead 5-23. 

As the second quarter started the team had the ball more frequently compared to Forney, because Forney was having trouble working as a unit. Junior Flynn Hatch defended persistently in this quarter of the game. The half ended with a score of 13-40. 

Early in the third quarter, Sevil hit a 3-point shot. Freshman Jacob Ariyo stole the ball from Forney and made a layup. 

“Bartu is a great shooter, [sophomore] Connor [Whann] is a great shooter, so being able to hit the threes when we need them,” Bien said.

During the second half of the game, Forney started to gain a few more points. Forney’s #2 and #31 both were able to raise the score with some threes, ending the quarter with 25-52. 

In the final quarter, while the team’s offense remained aggressive, the defense seemed to have loosened up a bit. Forney was still draining a few 3-pointers while scoring some layups. The game still ended with Highland Park beating Forney with a final score of 37-64. 

Bien was proud of the team’s performance.

“Eight of our 11 guys scored pretty even,” Bien said.  “Everyone got involved. Everybody was excited about the game.” 

Junior Ellis Coggin also believed everyone was involved in the victory.

“I think we played well as a team,” Coggin said. 

After this game, the team stood with a win-loss record of 15-4, with the statistic being 8-0 for in-district games.

JV Gold’s next game is a home game against Greenville on Feb. 11 at 5:30 p.m.