IRVINE - Ever since the establishment of the school, the Tillers have dominated Beckman’s Boys Basketball team. This year, Beckman’s team, led by sophomore Willis Ota, #20, guard, charged in an overtime thriller to defeat the Tillers, 61-58.

Junior Justin Arios, guard, led with 22 points, junior Santiago Bocchi, #44, forward, contributed 15 points, and the entire team was catalyzed by Ota with eight points and seven assists. Head Coach Steve Fischel commented, "This was a great team effort, especially on the defensive end. We really stepped up with our rebounding."

Senior Paul Goodman, #50, forward, remarked, "We had hoped for four years to get even close to Tustin, and we never did. [The victory] was unlike anything that has ever happened at Beckman."

The game started off slowly for the Patriots, as they remained scoreless until after a timeout with 5:52 left in the first quarter. Beckman trailed, 7-0.

However, Beckman concluded the quarter with a 13-2 run and took a four point lead.

The teams traded the lead back and forth all the way until the end of the fourth, and with 2:40 left on the clock, Tustin was leading, 47-51. With a free throw from Ota and layups from Bocchi and Goodman, Patriots tied the game up at 52-52. After a defensive stop by senior Rhett Bender, #42, forward, the game headed into overtime.

Overtime belonged to the seniors. Goodman got fouled with 53 seconds left, and the game was tied at 56-56. Beckman took the lead with a free throw. A block by Bender on Tustin’s Coulter put the nail in the coffin for the Tillers. Ota stated afterwards, "The whole team came through in the end in a hard-fought game in overtime." This game set a high precedent for the rest of the basketball season.