Oakland Tech’s Xavier Williams (12) celebrates after defeating Amador Valley during their NorCal Division II boys semifinal basketball playoff game at Oakland Tech High School in Oakland, Calif., on Saturday, March 7, 2026. Oakland Tech defeated Amador Valley 74-71. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND — Revenge, to borrow a line from the late poet Tupac Shakur, is like the sweetest joy.
Especially in the playoffs.
Oakland Tech, in a rematch from an earlier loss against Amador Valley, took its retribution Saturday night. In a back-and-forth slugfest, the Bulldogs executed down the stretch to hold off the visiting Dons 74-71 in the NorCal Division II semifinals.
“We weren’t playing as a team before,” Bulldogs senior wing Saddiq Alarbesh said. “But we knew we needed this one. It was a get back.”
Oakland Tech is headed back to the regional final. The Bulldogs (23-10) will play top-seeded San Joaquin Memorial on Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Fresno.
Tech is just two seasons removed from winning their first ever state championship back in 2024, where they beat Centennial-Bakersfield 79-55. Now, they stand two wins away from hanging another state championship banner.
Alarbesh led the Bulldogs with 17 points. Freshman wing Jordan Price added 12 and senior forward Jasen Davis finished with 11.
Oakland Tech survived the dominance of San Jose State commit Cade Krueger, whose 28 points led Amador Valley (21-13). Jaylen Smith added 21 points for the Dons.
“I’m gonna miss this group, man,” Amador Valley head coach Willis Gardner said. “They battled to the very end. Gritty team, grimy team, dirty team. Everything you could imagine, man, they put it all out there. … I have 12 seniors. I’m gonna miss those guys man. Happy for Tech though, man. They did a heck of a job.”
Back in December, Amador Valley came to Oakland and handed the hosts a 57-50 loss at the Double Goal Coaches Classic held at McClymonds High. The Dons caught Tech in a rough patch back then.
“We’re different now,” Bulldogs coach Karega Hart said. “Like, we weren’t together. We played really selfish basketball. The first time we played them, guys had their own agenda the first time, but now we’re at the time where nothing matters other than us winning.”
Tech is playing well right when they need it most. Hart, of course, would prefer his teams play well consistently. But peaking at the right time is better than not at all.
He said the Bulldogs were “on some other stuff” earlier this season. But Oakland Tech has won 11 of its last 12 and is riding an eight-game win streak. The Bulldogs advanced with a nail-biting win over the No.14-seeded Clovis Cougars, 69-67. Amador Valley upset the No. 2 Sacramento Dragons, 69-64.
That set up a chance at redemption for Tech. Facing Amador Valley again offered a chance to display the strides the Bulldogs have made as a team. Hart didn’t like how his team played early on in the season. But the stakes were much higher Saturday.
Early on, the Bulldogs established that they were the bully and sent relentless double teams to the Dons’ guards, forcing turnovers all night long.
“They were physical in the beginning,” Gardner said. “They controlled the whole game. Probably about until the last four or five minutes. We made a run. They were physical. They were determined. And that’s a team trying to get to state.”
Tech, it seemed, delivered the finishing blow when senior wing Noah Trammel found himself one-on-one with the rim after blowing past a Dons defender. He threw down a thunderous right hand dunk that pleased a raucous crowd in North Oakland to give the Bulldogs their biggest lead of the night, 12 points.
But Amador Valley just would not go away. Behind Krueger and Smith, the Dons cut Tech’s lead to two points with just 20 seconds remaining in the game.
Tech beat the Amador Valley pressure and Alarbesh got fouled attempting a game-sealing layup. He stepped to the free throw line with nine seconds remaining and another trip to the regional championship hanging in the balance. He left the first free throw short off the front rim.
But he’d been there before. He knew how to recenter. He walked away, found his composure, then stepped back up to the line. Nothing but net.
He put the Bulldogs up three. After Amador Valley missed a couple of free throws, the victory was sealed Saturday night.
“I’ve been through this for three straight years,” Alarbesh said. “I started on the championship team. I’ve been a starter coming through the last couple of years. So I’ve been in big moments before. Don’t faze me.”
Originally published at Devin Bradshaw, correspondent