Players in new roles aid Bryant in 2OT

6A-CENTRAL BOYS BRYANT 64, CABOT 59, 2OT

BRYANT — With several players out of the lineup due to injuries, Bryant was able to overcome multiple double-digit deficits and pulled out a 64-59, double-overtime victory over Cabot on Tuesday night at the Hornets Arena.

Senior guard Trenton Ford scored a game-high 23 points for the Hornets. Sophomore forward Robert Young Jr. finished with 19 points and junior guard Roderick Newton Jr. added 12.

“We had some new roles tonight because we’re down a couple of key pieces,” Bryant Coach Mike Abrahamson said. “The couple pieces that were missing tonight are key parts of our team, but we believe in the power of the whole team and I’m so incredibly proud of our team.”

Cabot (10-17, 4-6 6A-Central) jumped out to a 10-0 lead after two three-pointers by senior forward Grant Goddard.

The Panthers held a 20-12 advantage after the first quarter.

Bryant (26-2, 10-0) chipped away at the deficit in the second quarter. A layup from Ford just before the first-half buzzer tied the game at 24-24 going into halftime. Young was the high scorer at the break with 12 first-half points.

“I probably made a bad decision in how we wanted to guard their forwards at the beginning of the game,” Abrahamson said. “I hadn’t seen either one of them really even attempt three-pointers and certainly not make them. I got to give [Goddard] credit, he hit two quick ones and so we had to adjust.”

The Hornets took the lead briefly at 26-24 early in the third quarter, but the Panthers responded quickly. Senior guard Jermaine Christopher made a couple acrobatic layups and scored six points in the quarter as Cabot built its lead to 40-33 heading into the fourth quarter.

A three-pointer from senior guard Owen Swanson with 6:20 left pushed the Panthers’ lead to 45-35. Five quick points from Ford and a three-pointer from Newton pulled the Hornets to within 48-43 with four minutes left.

Ford hit a three-pointer to even the score at 50-50 with 2:05 left and force a Cabot timeout. That score would hold until the end of regulation as Christopher missed a jump shot at the buzzer as the game went to overtime.

Christopher scored a teamhigh 19 points for the Panthers. Goddard and senior guard Braydon Hall finished with 12 points apiece for Cabot.

In the first extra session, Young broke the tie by hitting a free throw with 2:55 left to give Bryant a 51-50 edge. Cabot regained the lead on a layup from Goddard at the 2:27 mark. A layup from Christopher with one minute to play pushed the Panthers’ lead to 54-51.

After a missed three-pointer from Newton that would have tied the game, Christopher split a pair of free throws to make it 55-51 with 19 seconds left. After two made free throws by Ford cut the lead to two, Bryant forced a steal and Young converted on a layup to tie the game at 55-55 with 3.7 seconds remaining and the game went into a second overtime.

The Hornets took a 5855 lead on a layup by Drake Fowler with 2:05 to play in the second overtime. Ford added another layup at the 1:12 mark to push the Bryant lead up to 60-56. Cabot did not make a field goal in the second overtime period.

“The guys just kept responding to every challenge that was put in front of them,” Abrahamson said. “As a coach, you are trying to teach life lessons through sport. I think the response to adversity, fighting every possession, those are life lessons that will help them down the road.”