On Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, the Dougherty Valley mens varsity basketball team faced the California Grizzlies in an intense match up to gain the upper hand in league rankings. According to Head Coach Mike Hansen, the team has won 23 out of 25 games they’ve played against Cal High. Even with this high stakes pressure, the Wildcats were able to pull away with a two point differential lead, ending the game with a score of 55-53.
The game began with the Grizzlies winning the tip off, but they were unable to convert it. Instead the first points were taken by senior Rashod Cotton Jr., and the additional six points as well. The Grizzlies took this as their sign to take a time out and recuperate, creating more momentum for the Wildcats. By a little over halfway through the quarter, the Wildcats led by five points, assisted by junior Rylan Sevilla with a left-handed layup. The Grizzlies soon caught up to tie the score at 10-10, but the Wildcats were able to pull ahead to end the quarter with a score of 14-10.
Going into the second quarter, the Wildcats started off strong on both sides of the court, creating a bigger point gap between the two teams. As the second quarter went on however, Dougherty began fouling the Grizzlies and had a tough time rebounding the ball. Additionally the Wildcats seemed to lose some of their aggression, and began passing the ball rather than shooting it. At this point they decided to take a timeout to adjust, and started pushing up their defensive line. The Grizzlies on the other hand began picking up their offense, closing the gap by one point. While the Wildcats had trouble offensively, the Grizzlies didn’t fail with making shots, and began to lead the score 24-21. Nearing the end of the quarter, Sevilla hit a shot beyond the arc, bringing the Wildcats to the lead at 27-24.
Coming back from halftime, the Wildcats had trouble rebounding offensively, but were able to keep up on defense by guarding higher up on the court. With a few loose balls, the Wildcats had to reset in order to gain control as the gap between the points grew smaller. So far, the game still proved to be low scoring, with a score of 32-28 halfway through the third quarter. The Wildcats gained momentum when they began rebounding offensively and when sophomore Alonzo Walker III took a charge for the team. By the end of the quarter, Dougherty put up a strong defensive line and were able to drain threes to end with a score of 42-39.
With the commencement of the last quarter, the Wildcats were able to steal the ball defensively and continue their lead ahead of the Grizzlies. Defense became more aggressive and more steals were performed, resulting in a forced time out by the Grizzlies. By this point, the Wildcats were still weak on offensive rebounds, but were able to lead the game. With only around a minute left, the Grizzlies had racked up five fouls, and were purposely fouling to gain possession of the ball quicker. With only a three point lead and possession of the ball, Dougherty called a time out. At seven seconds left, a Grizzly was put on the line for three shots at 0.7 seconds, after being fouled, with the score of 55-52. The player missed his second shot and third shot, resulting in a Wildcat win by a two point lead, carrying on the legacy to its eighth year.
“It’s that dog mentality,” junior Devyn Ranola commented, when asked what had been carried on through all their wins over Cal High.
“It’s just our tradition. Our guys know it’s unacceptable to lose to them,” Hansen said. “It’s that culture, just finding a way to win.”
Their next home game will be on Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, against San Ramon Valley High School at 7:30 p.m.
