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South went head-to-head against cross town rivals North for a second time but was not able to come out with a win. South lost 66-61 to North on Friday, Feb. 27 at North. With this loss in the minds of the team, they look to push forward and improve on their game for the playoffs.
Coming out strong in the first quarter, South led the game 16-11. South was hitting all of its shots and played great defense to attain that lead, interim head coach Pete Kingsley said.
“We played our game as far as running the floor on offense,” Kingsley said. “We played tough defense, controlled the defensive glass, and got it out and ran.”
After a strong first quarter, South deflated and was not hitting the shots they needed to. Defensive rebounds hurt South as well in the second quarter and were a big part of North’s comeback to take the lead 29-24 into half. North came back with a lot of momentum and a different defense, said power forward Brian Blanzy ’15.
“They switched up their defense and we started to struggle knocking down shots, Brian said.
North controlled the third quarter and went in to the fourth quarter with a 51-45 lead. South did not give up and kept fighting throughout the fourth. With under a minute left in the game, South was able to make it a four point game with two free throws made by Brennan Bushka ’17. Kingsley tried to motivate his team and believed they could complete the comeback.
“I told them to stick together as team because that’s always our main goal,” Kingsley said. “ I felt like we were going to win the game right down to the buzzer but unfortunately we couldn’t pull it off.”
A late travel made by South sealed the game and North came out with the victory, tying the series 1-1. Even with the loss, the team came out with positive outlooks on their play. South moved the ball and made good choices as a team, said Sam Blanzy ’15, who had 16 points.
“Our offense was good as a team,” Sam said. “We had good ball movement and our shot selection was good for the most part.”
South looks to come out strong against Anchor Bay on March 3. Anchor Bay trails South in league play and South plans to keep it that way. Playoffs are also on the teams mind as they prepare for a tough first game against East English Village, Sam said.
“East English Village is definitely on our minds,” Sam said. “We have to play our hardest to make an impact in the playoffs.”
