Coach Martinez's voice cut through the timeout huddle, his words barely audible over the band's relentless drums. "Darius, you're back in. Henderson, Davis—you're staying. Jonathan, Derek—take a breather."
Darius stood and ripped off his warmup, his body already warm despite sitting for six minutes. The scoreboard read Riverside 40, Eastbrook 67. Twenty-seven points down. The deficit felt insurmountable, but his face showed nothing. Just that same calm focus he'd carried since checking in during the first quarter.
"Get us back in this," Martinez said, looking directly at him. Not a request. An expectation.
Darius nodded once and jogged to the scorer's table. The Eastbrook crowd noticed immediately, their chants transforming into something more personal: "FRESH-MAN! YOU'RE DONE! FRESH-MAN! YOU'RE DONE!"
The buzzer sounded. Darius checked in, slapping the official's hand.
Game Time: 4:53
Terrell inbounded to Darius, who caught it at the top of the key. Marcus Davis picked him up immediately, his pressure suffocating, his confidence at its peak. The crowd's noise made thinking feel like wading through concrete.
Darius crossed half court and immediately went into motion. Not calling plays—the noise made that impossible—just signaling with his hands, his body language telling his teammates where to be.
He swung the ball to Henderson on the right wing. Henderson caught it and immediately looked inside where Khalil was posting up. Darius relocated to the left corner, drawing his defender with him, opening up the passing lane.
Henderson hit Khalil with the entry pass. Khalil caught it, backed down Isaiah Brooks with two powerful dribbles, spun baseline, and rose up for a hook shot.
Good.
Riverside 42, Eastbrook 67
Game Time: 4:37
Twenty-five-point deficit. A tiny dent in a massive hole.
Marcus Davis brought it back with that same aggressive energy, his dribble violent as he crossed half court. He ran a set, the ball swinging from side to side. Eastbrook's execution was flawless, their confidence making every movement look easy.
Tyler Green came off a screen and caught it on the left wing. Terrell's contest was good. Green shot anyway.
Swish.
Riverside 42, Eastbrook 70
Game Time: 4:19
Twenty-eight-point deficit. Back up.
Darius brought it back, and this time something shifted in his approach. The first time he'd checked in, he'd focused on getting his teammates involved, on making them better through traditional playmaking. But that wasn't working now. Not against this version of Eastbrook, not with this crowd making communication impossible.
He needed to be different. Not the facilitator trying to set up others. The silent weapon. The player who created opportunities not through obvious passes but through movement, through gravity, through forcing defenses to make impossible choices.
Game Time: 3:54
Darius crossed half court and immediately attacked off the dribble. His first step was explosive, getting him past Marcus's initial pressure. He drove into the paint, drawing three defenders toward him like magnets.
But instead of passing immediately, Darius kept his dribble alive. Probed. Made the defense commit. Two defenders converged on him fully, their positioning now completely compromised.
Only then did Darius kick it to Davis on the right wing. Davis caught it with his man two steps out of position. He attacked the closeout, drove baseline, and finished with a layup.
Riverside 44, Eastbrook 70
Game Time: 3:37
Twenty-six-point deficit. Still massive, but the approach was different now.
Marcus Davis brought it back, and Eastbrook ran another perfect set. Ball movement. Screens. Cuts. Their power forward Andre Mitchell caught it on the left block and backed down his defender with three powerful dribbles.
He rose up for a hook shot. Khalil rotated from the weak side, his timing perfect. His hand reached the ball at its apex.
Block. Clean. The ball flew out of bounds.
Game Time: 3:18
Eastbrook inbounded, trying to reset. Marcus dribbled at the top of the key, patient. He swung the ball to Green on the right wing. Green caught it and immediately attacked, his confidence still sky-high.
He drove baseline. Terrell stayed in front, his footwork perfect. Green rose up for a floater anyway.
Miss. Khalil grabbed the rebound with both hands.
Game Time: 3:01
Darius was already moving, calling for the outlet. Khalil hit him at half court. Darius attacked in transition with Henderson filling the right lane and Davis sprinting up the left side.
Two Eastbrook defenders scrambled back. Darius drove straight at them, his speed forcing them to make a choice. They committed to stopping his penetration.
Darius jumped and hit Henderson with a pass that seemed impossible—threaded between two defenders with perfect timing. Henderson caught it in stride and finished with a layup.
Riverside 46, Eastbrook 70
Game Time: 2:46
Twenty-four-point deficit. The margin was shrinking, possession by possession.
Marcus Davis brought it back, his expression showing he'd noticed the shift. Riverside was still down huge, but the bleeding had slowed. He crossed half court and called for a set, his voice lost in the crowd noise but his gestures clear.
Eastbrook ran their offense with patience. Ball swinging. Screens being set. Tyler Green came off a double screen and caught it on the left wing.
His defender was a step late. Green rose up for his signature three-pointer.
The shot was good, his form perfect—
But it clanged off the front of the rim. Finally. His hot streak broken.
Khalil grabbed the rebound. Immediate outlet to Darius.
Game Time: 2:23
Darius pushed the pace before Eastbrook could set their defense. He crossed half court and immediately saw the opportunity—their transition defense was scrambling, not quite set.
He drove into the paint, drawing three defenders. But instead of forcing a shot or making an obvious pass, Darius kept his dribble alive. Probed. Made them commit.
When all three defenders converged on him, Darius jumped and kicked it to Terrell in the left corner. Wide open. Terrell caught it in rhythm and shot without hesitation.
Three-pointer. Good.
Riverside 49, Eastbrook 70
Game Time: 2:07
Twenty-one-point deficit. Under twenty-five for the first time since the start of the quarter.
The Eastbrook crowd's noise dropped slightly—not much, but enough to notice. That invincible feeling they'd had moments ago was being challenged, possession by possession.
Marcus Davis brought it back with renewed aggression. He crossed half court and immediately attacked Darius off the dribble, his first step explosive. He drove into the paint where Khalil stepped up to help.
Marcus kicked it to their shooting guard on the right wing. The guard caught it and shot a three-pointer.
Good.
Riverside 49, Eastbrook 73
Game Time: 1:51
Twenty-four-point deficit. Back up. Eastbrook answering every small run.
Darius brought it back, his breathing controlled despite the intensity. He crossed half court and ran motion offense, but this time he was the catalyst. Not through passing immediately, but through movement.
He drove baseline, forcing Eastbrook's defense to rotate. When they did, he kicked it to Henderson on the opposite wing. Henderson immediately swung it to Davis in the corner. Davis shot a three-pointer.
Miss. But Khalil crashed the offensive glass, grabbed it, and put it back up.
Good.
Riverside 51, Eastbrook 73
Game Time: 1:33
Twenty-two-point deficit. Still massive, but the trend was there.
Marcus Davis brought it back, his face showing frustration now. They were still up huge, but Riverside wasn't folding. He crossed half court and ran a set designed to get Tyler Green another open look.
The ball swung from side to side. Green came off a screen on the right wing. Caught it. Rose up.
Terrell's contest was perfect, his hand right in Green's face.
The shot missed. Khalil grabbed the rebound.
Game Time: 1:12
Outlet to Darius. He pushed immediately, attacking in transition. Henderson and Terrell filled the lanes. Three-on-two situation.
Darius drove hard into the paint, forcing both defenders to commit. At the last second, he jumped and threw a no-look pass to Terrell cutting baseline.
Terrell caught it and finished with a dunk that made the Riverside bench erupt.
Riverside 53, Eastbrook 73
Game Time: 0:58
Twenty-point deficit. Back under twenty-five again.
The Eastbrook coach called timeout, his voice barely audible over the crowd but his gestures clear. The home fans were still loud, but the edge had dulled. That invincibility was being challenged.
As both teams walked to their benches, Darius caught the eye of Marcus Davis. The Eastbrook point guard's expression had changed—not panic, but awareness. Riverside wasn't done. This game wasn't over.
Game Time: 0:46
The timeout ended. Eastbrook came out with renewed focus. Marcus brought it up and ran a deliberate set. The ball moved patiently, making Riverside's defense work.
Their power forward caught it on the left block and backed down his defender. He rose up for a hook shot. Good.
Riverside 53, Eastbrook 75
Game Time: 0:29
Twenty-two-point deficit. Eastbrook answering again.
Darius brought it back with time running down in the quarter. He crossed half court and immediately attacked. His first step got him past Marcus's pressure. He drove into the paint, absorbed contact from the help defense, and rose up.
The floater left his hands at a perfect angle, kissing off the glass.
Good.
Riverside 55, Eastbrook 75
Game Time: 0:14
Twenty-point deficit. The quarter was almost over, but the momentum had shifted.
Marcus Davis brought it up quickly, trying to get one more score before the buzzer. He crossed half court and attacked immediately, his drive aggressive and determined.
Darius stayed in front, his footwork perfect. Marcus spun back, creating separation, and rose up for a jumper as the buzzer sounded.
The shot was good, but the horn had already blown.
End of Third Quarter: Riverside 55, Eastbrook 75
Twenty-point deficit. Still massive. Still seemingly insurmountable. But different from the twenty-seven it had been six minutes ago.
As both teams walked to their benches for the quarter break, Darius's face showed nothing. No celebration for the small run. No frustration at the huge deficit. Just that same calm focus that said the job wasn't finished.
On the bench, Derek clapped him on the shoulder. "Good run. Keep that energy."
Coach Martinez was already diagramming plays for the fourth quarter, his voice carrying urgency. "We're not out of this. Twenty points in ten minutes is doable. But we need stops. Every possession matters."
The Eastbrook crowd was still loud, their chants coordinated and confident. But something had shifted in the last five minutes. That invincible feeling had cracks in it now.
And Darius Kingsley—the silent weapon who created opportunities not through obvious playmaking but through gravity and movement—was just getting started.