Varsity Basketball vs. Gonzaga

Bivins Powers Comeback Win 53-49 In OT vs. Gonzaga

By Club Writers Andreas Millradt (Class of 2028),  Vinny Brinkman (Class of 2028), and Monroe Duff (Class of 2027)

Senior point guard Darius Bivins carried his team in an electrifying game for a comeback win over the Gonzaga Eagles, 53-49. Bivins, recently named a McDonald’s All-American, scored the last seven points of the fourth quarter to tie the game at 45, including the go-ahead basket in overtime to seal the win.

With 4:57 left in the third quarter, the Knights found themselves staring down a 13-point deficit. With just two minutes left in the game, the Knights were still looking at a 45-38 deficit and running out of time. Bivins then went on his run, scoring the last seven points of the quarter–highlighted by an and-one layup plus free throw, followed by a clutch steal and finish to make it 45-43, and a fadeaway jumper with 13 seconds left to tie the game.

In overtime, small forward Justin Edwards (Class of 2026) hit two free throws to take the lead 49-48. Following a free throw from Gonzaga’s Dave Mbuyamba (Class of 2028) to tie the game, Bivins once again came up clutch as he drained a long-distance two-pointer to take the lead 51-49. Two critical free throws from Corey Brandon (Class of 2028) iced the game with seconds left to make the final score 53-49, Knights.

After the game, Coach Wooten said about the overtime: “We felt good going to OT. The momentum was with the Ozone, which was behind us and gave us energy.  We told them the defense had to continue to be stifling and to continue to be in attack mode on offense.”

O’Connell had three players finish with double-digit points: Bivins leading the scoring with 22, Edwards finishing with 17, and Brandon with 10. Dave Mbuyamba led the scoring for Gonzaga with 13, his brother Allen Mbuyamba (Class of 2026) scoring 12, and Chase Hogg (Class of 2027) contributed 12. Both teams played stellar defense throughout the game, making every point hard-earned.

The win brought the Knights to 16-5 overall and 5-2 in WCAC play, currently sitting at the No. 3 for the playoffs. O’Connell has reentered the national rankings at #23 via MaxPreps. The Knights look to stay hot heading into the postseason.