Slam-Dunking the Competition: Hawks Defeat Potter’s House

Team Name	Score
Forest Hills Eastern	78
Potter's House	53

Following victories in the Cornerstone Holiday Tournament and the River Valley Tournament, the 6-0 Boys Varsity Basketball team took on Potter’s House on Tuesday night for their first game back from the holiday break.

Senior Jayce Culp darts down the court to make a dunk before his opponents catch up.

The game started off with a tense start – any time FHE attempted to pull ahead, Potter’s House quickly clapped back with successful shots of their own, often tying the score or pulling ahead. This caused some foul play, with the Hawks collecting 3 fouls and Potter’s House receiving 4 by the end of the first quarter with the Hawks snagging a narrow lead of 18-12.

The Hawks began to hit their stride in the second quarter, with senior Aiden Sullivan racking up his total points to 10 with 5:02 minutes left in the half, making him the lead scorer at the time. The first half came to a close with FHE leading 30-22 and Aiden Sullivan scoring a total of 12 points thus far, maintaining his status as the lead scorer of the game.

As the third quarter progressed, FHE managed to gradually pull ahead of Potter’s House. With major contributions from Drew Patten (’24) and Jake Pallo (’23), scoring a total of 7 and 6 points respectively, the score increased to 37-25 with 5:40 left in the third quarter. The Hawks rounded off the third quarter with a score of 52-34 showing no signs of slowing down heading into the final quarter of the game.

Senior Mac Denbraber dribbles the ball towards Potter’s Houses’ basket, making another successful basket and earning FHE 2 points.

The final quarter of the game served the Hawks well, further increasing their lead on Potter’s House. FHE had managed to bump up the score to 63-41 with 4:25 left to play. Successful shots made by Jayce Culp (‘23), Mac Denbraber (‘23), and Aman Bhatnagar (‘23) helped FHE secure a sizeable lead over Potter’s House. As the final buzzer sounded, the Hawks managed to take down Potter’s House 78-53, keeping their hopes of an undefeated season alive. Senior captain Aiden Sullivan was the top scorer of the night, amassing a total of 20 points.

Tuesday’s win makes FHE’s season record 7-0, placing them in the top spot of the OK Gold Conference rankings. The Hawks play at home again on Friday, January 6 in their first conference game of the season against South Christian High School.