Colbert sparks Bruins’ rally in second half
Broadneck erases 11-point halftime deficit, overcomes experienced Admirals with bench
Early in the third quarter of Monday’s boys basketball game against Severn, Broadneck’s Michael Cantrell stole the ball and sent it up the court to Nicky Gatton, who tipped it to Che Colbert for a basket and a foul.
That was just the start.
Colbert scored 14 of his game-high 25 points in the second half as the Bruins quickly turned an 11-point halftime deficit into a six-point lead en route to a 63-49 victory over the visiting Admirals.
“We did a very good job attacking at both ends of the court, and our zone slowed them up enough offensively,” Broadneck coach John Williams said. “They did a great job making shots in the first half, and our defense adjusted well.”
Severn (3-3) has an experienced senior trio it will rely on heavily this season, and it showed in the first half. AJ Burch had a team-high 17 points, Mo Terry had 13 points and nine rebounds and Owura Berko had10 points. Unfortunately for the Admirals, 32 of those 40 points came in the first half.
Burch and Berko each made two 3pointers and had eight points in the second quarter, as Severn outscored Broadneck, 21-12. Burch’s 3 at the buzzer gave the Admirals a 38-27 halftime lead over the Bruins (2-0).
“We knew what we had to do to respond; Logan told me that we had to take control inside and on the boards,” Broadneck forward Andrew Rose said.
Rose had nine points in the first half, keeping the Bruins within reach. His teammates took care of the second half. Especially Colbert. He had nine points in the team’s13-2 run to start the third, evening the score at 40. Broadneck took its first lead of the game with 2:02 remaining in the third when a Jamar Young steal started a sequence with the ball ending up with Cantrell, who fed Colbert for another easy basket. Broadneck’s bench outscored Severn’s, 15-6.
“When we come into the game, we know we are being counted on to keep everything going,” Cantrell said. “Andrew told me early on that we need to make sure there is no drop off on our end.”
Williams’ bench eased the pressure on Broadneck’s starters to produce at both ends of the court. Logan Vican, who had two fouls early, had a strong second half as well. He scored 12 of his 14 points after the break and added seven rebounds.
“We have some talented bigs and a deep inside rotation,” Williams said. “We are happy with how they prepared for the season.”
Vican, who had a bloody lip after the game, was a big part of the Bruins’ resurgence last year. He knows that, with the talent and depth Broadneck possess, expectations will be much higher.
“We know what we are capable of and what is expected out of us, and we worked hard in the offseason to meet those expectations,” said the 6-foot-9 Vican.
Jamar Young had seven points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals in a solid all-around performance for Broadneck. Colbert and Vican closed the game late with two free throws and a dunk, respectively. Colbert matched up well with good friend Burch.
“He’s my brother; I love him and I love playing him,” Colbert said. “Coach told us to keep at it in the second half. Keep playing defense the way we were playing and good things would happen.”
Broadneck outscored Severn in the second half, 36-11. Williams spoke to his team Friday night after a 17-point lead over Arundel dwindled down to a five-point victory.
“I think it hit home Friday after the game and Saturday at practice,” Williams said. “Being down 11 at the half, it was easy to get the buy in there. I don’t think we were playing bad; they were just hitting a lot of shots. We did a much better job in the second half holding them to 11 points.”
The Admirals lost LJ Owens and Jermaine Hall to graduation, but that was a known entity coming into winter practice. This is a talented team that needs to find more scoring and develop more depth as it moves into the MIAA B Conference schedule shortly.