The annual crosstown basketball games were held at Sentinel High School on the 7th and 10th of February. The student sections were packed and the gym was full of energy. The students and other spectators were decked out in either their Knights or Spartans gear.

The night of Tuesday the 7th was kicked off with the Junior Varsity boys basketball game, and what an incredible game it was. There were lead changes back and forth the whole game, but at first, it seemed that Hellgate would come out with the win. But all it took to be back in the game for Sentinel was a couple of clutch three-pointers. Eventually, at the end of regulation the game was tied, sending it into overtime. 

In overtime, Hellgate took the lead and held it the entire period. But another Sentinel 3-pointer at the very end sent the game into double overtime, with the score at 51-51. Both teams were playing excellent defense and were going all out for every rebound and possession. But then, with 45 seconds left in the second overtime period, Sentinel hit yet another three-pointer and took the lead. All they had to do was play the same defense for the last 45 seconds as they had for the last ten minutes and they would secure the win. And that’s exactly what they did. 

As for the boys varsity, things didn’t go quite as well. They kept the game very close the whole way through, until the very end when Hellgate started to pull away. Sentinel had the lead at halftime but Hellgate knew that they had to start giving it their all if they wanted to win that game. The final score was 63-46 for the Knights.

The girls varsity game was a very entertaining one. It was fast-paced and the crowd was high-energy. The score was back and forth all game with multiple lead changes. Mr. Nelson’s pep band was on fire. Sentinel kept the score uncomfortably close to Hellgate but eventually fell short by two. It took a clutch shot at the end for Hellgate to take the lead. They barely managed to hold off the efforts for a comeback from Sentinel. 

On Friday the 10th, Sentinel boys varsity team extended their losing streak to ten games. They hadn’t won a game since January 6th, and were hoping to change that. But the Big Sky Eagles said no. They played incredible defense and only allowed 36 points. Sentinel lost by 20 in this game, with the final score being 56-36.

Girls varsity also lost to Big Sky on this day, with the game having the exact same score as the boys varsity game. This brings the Sentinel girls varsity team to a record of 7-5, which is an outstanding record when compared to the 3-12 boys. 

These games were very high-energy, fast-paced, and fun to watch. The Sentinel basketball teams work hard to both win and put on a show for the audience. Thanks to those boys and girls for all their hard work and dedication.