The Heritage Christian Warriors showed early season confidence with a 75-23 win in the second game of The Tip-Off Classic. The showdown took place at Heritage Christian School in Northridge, CA on November 20th, 2024. Heritage, led by Senior wing, Dillan Shaw, and Senior forward, Tae Simmons, was able to make a strong statement by finishing the first quarter ahead 23-4 over Kennedy’s Golden Cougars.
Shaw, a Saint Mary’s University commit, was able to put up 18 points with 24 minutes of playtime. While the Warrior’s offense was quite impressive, shooting 8 of 18 from 3-point range, it can be argued that the game was won by the defense as the Warriors were able to walk away with 23 takeaways over the Cougars. We also have to mention Max Hackney, the Sophomore small forward who shot 6 for 6 in field goal attempts giving the Warriors 13 points.
The Cougars were an expected underdog coming into the game. Senior forward, Adam Aldrete, was the high scorer for Kennedy, putting up 10 points, about half of the team’s overall points. Though it was an early-season downer for the Cougars, the boys held their heads high and are looking forward to the long season ahead of them.
This was the first and only meeting of the season between the Warriors and the Cougars. The Warriors now go on to face the rest of their opponents as they try to improve on their 2023-24 season Division II playoff run where they lost to Centennial in the Southern California Regional Finals.
Based in Los Angeles, California, Martin is a freelance photographer with Martin26Photos, specializing in sports and portrait photography. He has made a name for himself in Southern California’s sports photojournalism scene, covering local high school and college events as well as media days. With experience capturing high-profile Division 1 athletics, Martin aims to expand his work to professional sports in the near future.