Ceres High's and Central Valley's varsity boys basketball teams faced off for the final time in Western Athletic Conference play and perhaps forever this past week.
The Bulldogs (WAC) and Hawks (Central California Conference) will compete in different leagues beginning next season.
Inder Sandhu and Ceres High won the crosstown showdown, 56-46, against Daniel Villasenor and host Central Valley Friday night.
"It's a great way to end the rivalry and season," Sandhu said. "You always have to expect these types of games to be competitive because of the atmosphere. It was fun."
"It's a tough loss," Villasenor said. "We wanted this more than any other game. It's Senior Night and Homecoming. It's the last time we play them. We tried our hardest."
The Bulldogs posted a 12-15 overall record and finished fourth in the WAC standings (5-5).
The Hawks went 9-18 and placed fifth in conference play (3-7).
Ceres High avenged a 57-52 loss.
Inder Sandhu tallied a game-high 22 points during his final game with the Bulldogs.
Elijah Hughes added 12 points.
Dalton Durossette and Christian Murry collected seven and five points, respectively.
Derrick O'Neal and Brock DeWitt chipped in with four points each.
Brock Moore had two points.
Villasenor tallied a team-high 14 points for Central Valley.
Max Sanchez added 11 points.
Miguel Jimenez, David Serrano, Tony Gaut and Munraj Singh collected eight, seven, four and two points, respectively.
Jimenez, Serrano, Alonzo Bustos, Hanson Hy and Phil Jackson competed in Hawk uniforms for the last time.
Head coach Mike Rodriguez recognized the five seniors prior to tipoff.
Central Valley shot 30 percent (6 of 20) from the foul line.
The Bulldogs shot 58 percent (19 of 33) from the charity stripe. "We missed 14 free throws," Villasenor said. "We lost by 10. It came down to that."
Ceres High outscored Central Valley 29-19 in the opening half.
The Bulldogs limited the Hawks to just four points in the first quarter.
"We executed on both ends of the floor," Sandhu said.
Ceres High's student cheering section serenaded Inder with chants of MVP as he exited the game late in the fourth quarter.
"They showed their respect to me and I really appreciated it," Sandhu said. "It means a lot."
