Oracle! The 10th annual basketball matchup against Lick Wilmerding and University High School was played on January 12, 2017. The tournament, held at Oakland’s Golden State Warriors’ Oracle Arena, embodies the decades-long rivalry between the two San Francisco high schools.
Lick-Wilmerding fans, exuberantly dressed in full black and yellow regalia, climbed aboard school buses—also notably yellow and black. Lick fans carried bright yellow and black pom-poms, freshly painted banners of catchy phrases, larger than life face printouts of the the athletes on both the men and women’s varsity teams, and an immense Lick flag. The crowd of Lick was over 400 and ready to face their rivals.
First up, Women’s Varsity Basketball.
As the LWHS women made their way onto the Oracle basketball court, Tiger Fans roared. Led by Cheer Club members Khloe Thomas ‘18, Maya John ‘18, Shannon Raymundo ‘19 and Karina Arenas ‘19 and cheer captains Loic Marcon ‘17, Nigel Berkeley ‘17, Nate Pola ‘19 and Sara Kashani-Sabet ‘19, students waved their black and yellow pom-poms and screamed their support. The first half of the women’s game was executed well, with both teams playing solid defense. At half time, Cheer Club took the floor and performed a lively routine to pump up the crowd. The routine featured a human pyramid and other dance moves. In the second half, the Tigers were led by their senior varsity captains, Maya Burris ‘17 and Zeli Grey ‘17 in a scoring surge to build their lead, ending in a hard-fought, roaring victory by the Lick Tigers (32-23).
“It was really thrilling getting buckets with my team for the last time,” said Burris who had multiple highlight plays on both sides of the court featuring many defensive blocks on multiple UHS players. Grey added that her last Oracle game was “probably my favorite one yet. Coming into it, I knew it would be a close game for us because of the rivalry and excitement. As a senior, it was definitely a bittersweet ending, but I’m happy with how the team played and proud of Lick’s collective sportsmanship.” Burris noted that “getting the dub” for her senior year, “was the icing to the cake and definitely one for the books to start 2017.”
Following a recital of the National Anthem by UHS sophomore Ebony Morris, the men’s team ran onto the court and a new round of play began. The UHS team shoc
ked and drew questions from the Lick crowd like, “how are they so tall?” and, “they don’t miss!” The Red Devils took the lead early on with a number of three-point shots against Lick’s varsity men’s team.
At halftime, Lick Wilmerding’s Dance Ensemble and Dance Company performed an impressive and exciting array of dance routines. Leila Kashani-Sabet ‘17 recounts her experience dancing in the half-time show: “When you’re out there, you feel the energy from other Lick students and you get lost in the moment. You get to enjoy the energy coming from
other Lick students and you get lost in the moment. You get to enjoy the energy coming from the crowd and feed off that to make your performance that much better.”
In the second half, the Tigers attempted to comeback. However, University’s lead unfortunately held, despite Lick’s best efforts. The Devils took the win by 14 (57-43). Nathan Craik ‘17 attributed the Tiger’s loss to, “bei
ng in a slump of heavy isolation play as well as bad defense that lead to open and easy shots.” Despite the loss, Craik described his last Oracle game as, “…an experience like no other! Playing in front of such a large crowd that supports you and cheers you on is very rare.” He added, “losing in front of a large group is also heartbreaking.” Similarly, Nicholas Lam ‘17 recalled his last Oracle: “Bitter sweet. I loved being in the moment and seeing everyone cheer and have school pride. It was also sad knowing that it’s all coming to an end.”
The prized possession: a framed basketball jersey that reads “Univmerding,” and is half red and white, half black and yellow went to Lick this year, as both schools took one game in which case the jersey goes to the team that didn’t have it the year before.
After the games, Lick and University students gathered in the parking lot to enjoy hotdogs, chips, and brownies at the annual barbecue—a satisfying way to end an eventful day of basketball rivalry.
Win or lose, the event at Oracle has rarely been just about basketball. The whole environment attracts students, teachers, alumni, parents and families every year. Everyone is truly proud to be wearing black and yellow, cheering their classmates on. Whether it be dance, basketball, or stomping in the stands—it’s a way of showing and sharing school culture and spirit.
All photos by Barre Fong
