In a tightly contested Palomares League matchup, the Glendora Tartans withstood a late push from the Diamond Bar Brahmas to earn a 65–60 road victory on Friday night at Diamond Bar High School.

The loss drops Diamond Bar to 11–9 overall and 1–1 in league play, while Glendora improves to 13–6 overall and also moves to 1–1 in Palomares League action.

Diamond Bar opened the game with strong energy, jumping out to a 5–0 lead in the first quarter and extending the margin to 10–1 midway through the period. The Brahmas continued to control the tempo and led 12–3 with under three minutes remaining, but Glendora responded with a surge to close the quarter.

Sophomore guard Noah Rangel capped the comeback by drilling a buzzer-beating three-pointer, giving the Tartans a 14–13 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Glendora carried that momentum into the second quarter and went into halftime with a 32–27 advantage. Junior center Jeremiah Garzon led all scorers with nine first-half points on his way to a game-high 21 points. Senior guard Max Hilgenfeldt added seven points in the opening half.

Diamond Bar was paced early by Ezekiel Alegado, who scored 12 of his 19 points before halftime, all coming from beyond the arc. Alegado finished the night with five three-pointers.

The Tartans appeared to take control in the third quarter, widening the lead to 43–31 with 5:32 remaining. Diamond Bar answered with a determined rally, trimming the deficit to just one at 43–42, but Glendora closed the quarter on a 5–1 run to take a 49–44 lead into the final period.

In the fourth quarter, the Brahmas briefly reclaimed the lead for the first time since the opening quarter when senior Jacob Kim knocked down a three-pointer to put Diamond Bar ahead 55–54 with 3:20 remaining. The lead was short-lived, however, as Glendora senior forward Tanner Grable responded with a clutch three to swing the advantage back to the Tartans at 57–55.

Glendora maintained composure down the stretch, making timely free throws and defensive stops to secure the five-point victory.

Garzon finished with a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Hilgenfeldt added 16 points, three assists, and three rebounds. Rangel scored nine points, Grable contributed six points, seven rebounds, and four assists, and Moshe Loucks added six points.

For Diamond Bar, Alegado led the way with 19 points, five three-pointers, and two steals. Kim scored 14 points, Ayden Ellis added 11 points and three steals, and Jedi Chow filled the stat sheet with 10 points, nine assists, and six rebounds. The Brahmas shot 11-for-32 from three-point range and 11-for-14 from the free-throw line, but were outrebounded 33–13 and committed 12 turnovers.

Up Next

Diamond Bar will hit the road on Friday, January 9, traveling to Ayala High School to face the Bulldogs, with tipoff scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Glendora will also be on the road Friday night, visiting Claremont High School to take on the Wolfpack, also tipping off at 6:30 p.m.

Photo Gallery

Photos taken by Anthony Sarinana