Harvard-Westlake (HW) junior varsity (JV) basketball team beat Beverly Hills High School in a back forth game on Friday, Dec. 21. The HW JV basketball team improved to an even 6-6 record with their win Friday.

HW started the game off to a rocky start, losing 10 to nine after the first quarter. HW’s ball movement was good during the first quarter, but they just weren’t able to put away their open jump shots.

The second quarter was much better for the JV team as they went into halftime leading by six. HW dominated the whole quarter and it was capped off with a buzzer-beater three by Jason Thompson ‘22.

In the second half, HW continued to keep making good passes and keep the Beverly Hills defense moving. HW was able to capitalize on the exhausted Beverly Hills defense and increase their lead to 39-32. Throughout the third quarter, Jack Weisskopf ‘21 was playing solid defense and hitting almost every shot. Weisskopf continued his hot streak going into the fourth quarter, starting the period with a layup. Weisskopf would go on to score a total of 24 points in the game.

In the fourth quarter, Dahnte Russell ‘22 took advantage of the space he was given and was able to make some easy jump shots. Russell ended the game with a double-double, finishing with 12 points and 10 rebounds. HW won the game by a final score of 60-47. Russell talked about the much-needed win for the JV team and how this is a great sign going into future league games

“We came out today knowing we needed to get a W, and we came out and got the job done. It was a job effort and I’m excited to see how the rest of the season plays how with this great energy we have going on” Russell said.

The HW JV basketball got a very important win on Friday night and the team hopes to continue riding their hot streak for the remainder of the season.