After months of hard practices, countless workouts and a season full of promise, the Men’s Varsity Basketball Team won the  State Championship ga following their 66 55 defeat of Centennial on March 28th.

The team showed lots of grit and intensity as they were able to jump out to a quick lead over Centennial and never look back.

The game started out with the guard Trevor John letting the whole crowd know it was his time. His five three pointers paced the Mustangs into a 20 12 advantage after one. John and fellow senior Brendan Pedley provided all but two points off their combined six threes in the first period.

The second quarter remained similar, where the Mustangs suffocated Centennial defensively, and stroked it from beyond the arc. Even after all the sweet shooting, the team was only up 35 to 28 at the half.

The third quarter was all Monte Vista, as the team started to pull away using the same formula throughout, sharp shooting and a stiff defense. The third ended with the Mustangs up 51-34.

Centennial proved why they had made it to the championships in the fourth, as they came storming back to eventually cut the deficit to seven points with a few minutes remaining. But that charge wouldn’t be enough, as the game ended in a 66-55 victory for the Mustangs.

The team showed what they were all about, finishing with an astonishing 11 of 16 from beyond the arc, all while keeping Centennial to 28 percent shooting.

The win  capped off a magical season for the team and gave the school its first state championship in any sport. The squad, led by their five senior starters, were able to endure a tough schedule and finish with an NCS, NorCal and State Championship.

The season started out with a stellar out of league record. The team remained unbeaten while beating quality teams such as Moreau Catholic and Freedom. They carried that swagger into a brilliant start to league play.

The team won a thriller at home against De La Salle that ended in a last second block by Center Spencer Rust. The team continued their winning ways until they ran into rival San Ramon.

The game at San Ramon was a back and forth battle that eventually saw the Wolves win on a last second three from Guard Jerrry Kaczeswki. Following the crushing loss, there was a new fire in the team.

The boys kicked it into gear after that, sweeping the remaining games in league and closing out an EBAL title with an 11 point victory to clinch league.

As NCS started, the team hit its stride, winning each playoff game in rather dominant fashion, concluding in a big win over Freedom at St. Mary’s. Ths gave the school it’s first NCS title since the 2009 season.

From NCS, Monte Vista moved on to NorCal, where the team hit a new groove. They won all the preliminary round games handily, beating Bellarmine and McClymonds by 20 plus points each time.

In the NorCal final came a third matchup with Freedom, and it set up to be a game from the ages. The game was in Monte Vista’s hands for the majority of the game, thanks to sharp outside shooting. However, Freedom was able to bank in a three at the buzzer to push the game into overtime.

After Freedom started off the scoring, the Mustangs were able to go on a run to pull away and win its first ever NorCal final, giving them their first ever berth in the State Chapionship game.

The team pulled off the win against the powerful Centennial, capping off the magical season.

Led by fiery coach Nick Jones, the team was able to not only buy into the system but the leadership Coach Jones provided. The coach, named the East Bay Coach of the Year by the Contra Costa times, was able to help not only build a basketball relationship, but a personal relationship.

“The players on the team got along with Coach Jones because he relates with us well,” senior Spencer Rust said. “He fit right in and we all bought into his system.”