Brown, Holbrook turn tables on Avon
In front of an electric home crowd, Holbrook put together a nearly perfect victory over Mayflower Athletic Conference Comprehensive opponent Avon on Friday.
After a 14-3 start, the Bulldogs kept the Panthers at bay with a strong offensive showing in the paint and from deep as sophomore captain Allen Brown Jr. poured in 33 points, with 19 of those coming in the first half. Holbrook went on to win 77-67 after losing to Avon a little over two weeks ago.
“Basically, (facing) my old team is very important,” said Holbrook coach Rich Gifford. “We got off to a great start and had 40-something points in the first half. We ran up and down the floor and mixed up what we played on defense. We used to play man-to-man, but we have been mixing it up and played outstanding.”
Without a single turnover in the first quarter, Holbrook‘s (9-4, 1-2) offense attacked the paint with all but three points being scored from in close as the Bulldogs led 25-9 after one.
“We haven’t been doing a lot of that,” Gifford said about the points in the paint in the first. “Armani (Perkins) and Brown have been averaging about 45 points combined, but we haven’t been doing a lot of (attacking the paint).”
Brown Jr. hit three triples in the second quarter to keep Avon (12-2, 2-1) at bay as the Panthers cut the deficit to nine at 3223. The Bulldogs closed the half on a 12-4 run to make it a 44-27 advantage at the break.
“I want (Brown) to have fun,” said Gifford about the sophomore. “I’ve always, in my 45 years of coaching, been (having players) run up and down the floor and that will never change.”
The Panthers came out in the third and made it a 13-point contest, but Brown Jr. knocked down another pair of triples to make it a 61-42 contest as he hit his first six shots from distance before missing his final two attempts.
Senior captain Armani Perkins added 18 points and eight boards for the Bulldogs.
In the fourth, Avon did not quit as it ended on a 15-5 run to make a 20-point game down to 10 thanks in a big part to freshman Nyisah Miranda’s team-high 25 points, with 20 of those coming in the second half.
“You have to expect runs like that from teams like that,” Gifford said about the late spurt from the Panthers. “They are a very, very, very good team. Very good.”
Next up, Holbrook will head to West Bridgewater on Thursday at 5 p.m. Avon will play at Diman on Monday at 5 p.m.