Handley 64-61 over Millbrook

[VerizonSportsFan]

Good game to watch - Millbrook is much improved and Handley is not clicking like that were earlier in the year.

22-14 end 1st qtr

37-23 @ 1/2

49-43 end 3rd qtr

 

[VerizonSportsFan]

Handley boys hold off Millbrook's second-half rally

• By ROBERT NIEDZWIECKI | The Winchester Star
  
• Jan 31, 2018
  
• 

Handley’s D’Andre James works his way to the basket as Millbrook’s Trammell Anthony defends during Tuesday’s Northwestern District clash. James had 14 points to help the Judges net a 64-61 win over the Pioneers.

• Scott Mason/The Winchester Star

Millbrook’s Trammell Anthony shoots against Handley’s Sam Wise (21) and Michael Brown during the Pioneers’ 64-61 loss Tuesday.


WINCHESTER — At the end of the game, both the Handley and Millbrook boys’ basketball teams looked back and expressed frustration at the high-percentage shots each missed during the course of Tuesday night’s game.

A big reason why the Judges were the ones who came out on top is because Keevon Martin didn’t hold on to the negative feeling of his missed opportunity.

One second after a layup by Millbrook’s Jordan Jackson made it a one-possession game for the first time since it was 10-7 in the first quarter, the senior guard made two free throws with 5.3 seconds left to boost Handley’s lead back to four (64-60).

Those two free throws — eight seconds after Martin missed the front end of a one-on-one — allowed the Judges to hold on for a 64-61 win at their Maddex-Omps Gymnasium.

Handley moved to 16-3 overall and 9-0 in the Class 4 Northwestern District with the win, which means the Judges need only one more victory to clinch the district regular season championship and an automatic region tournament berth.

Martin had been a force at the line in making 28 of 34 free throws coming into Friday, and he said some words from Handley coach Jason Toton helped him shake off his miss with 13 seconds left.

“Coach told me to keep my head up, and I just knocked them down,” said Martin, who had 10 points Tuesday. “You have to be confident and not think about what happened before.”

Martin fouled Millbrook’s Jordan Funk — who scored all 15 of his points in the second half — with 3.6 seconds left. Funk made the first free throw, but Kevin Curry grabbed the rebound of his second attempt to secure the win.

The Judges needed pretty much every rebound they could get on a night when they made only 24 of 58 shots from the floor and 10 of 19 from the line.

Handley outrebounded Millbrook 36-26 (19-10 in the first half) and had a 19-8 edge on the offensive glass. The Judges’ second-chance points played a big role in helping them build a 37-23 halftime lead.

And while Handley wasn’t able to convert many offensive rebounds in a 9-for-27 shooting performance in the second half, the opportunities it did take advantage of were enough to help it stave off multiple Millbrook surges.

“We weren’t making shots in the paint,” Toton said. “I don’t know how many point-blank missed shots that we had. That allowed them to run on us, we weren’t getting back on defense, and they made some shots when they needed to.

“Our motto all season has been, ‘Everything matters.’ It matters what we do on the offensive end, what we do on the defensive end, every little thing. They lead up to big things. When you don’t do a lot of the little things right, they can haunt you in the end. But I think it’s good for us to have a game like this, where it’s a close game and you can still win.”

The Pioneers (16-4, 8-2) — who had a seven-game winning streak snapped and lost for the first time since falling 75-50 to Handley on Jan. 4 — trailed 42-25 before going on a 13-2 run to make it 44-38 with 2:32 left in the third quarter.

Down 54-44 with 4:39 left, the Pioneers went on a 16-8 run that was capped by Jackson’s up-and-under layup with six seconds left after dribbling three-quarters of the court.

Millbrook’s second-half play was aided by a switch to a 2-3 zone for the first 12 minutes of the second half, which created stronger cohesion on that side of the floor.

The Pioneers’ transition offense as well as their 3-point shooting played a big role in the comeback. The Pioneers knocked down five of their seven 3-pointers and shot 12 of 25 after halftime.

In addition to grabbing some key rebounds in the second half, the Judges made just enough free throws to survive. Those makes included the two that Michael Brown (team-high 16 points) sank with 18.6 seconds left to put the Judges up 62-55.

Jackson put Brown on the line as a result of a personal foul, but Brown was called for a technical foul. Millbrook coach Rob Harris said it was assessed because Brown threw the ball in his direction after Jackson’s personal.

Ben Curtin (game-high 17 points) made one of two technical free throws after Brown made his free throws to kick off a 5-2 run over 12 seconds for the Pioneers.

The Pioneers’ second-half effort wasn’t enough to win, but Millbrook liked what it saw after the first half.

“In the first half, we missed four layups, we missed four free throws, and Handley did a great job of coming out and establishing great tempo,” Harris said. “We probably should have been down by six or eight instead of 14. Handley did an excellent job of rebounding, and we did not step up to the challenge from a rebounding perspective. I thought there were some rebounds in the second half that we should have cleared, but we didn’t.

“But at the end of it all, we competed. We competed for the entire game. We knew if we could cut the lead going into the fourth quarter that we would have an opportunity.”

Curtin said the way Millbrook finished Tuesday’s game gives it reason for hope. Curtin feels confident the Pioneers will play the Judges again and Tuesday showed them they can play at Handley’s level.

“We might have been intimidated some in the first half,” Curtin said. “We just needed time to settle down. We played as a team and shared the ball in the second half.”

Curry and D’Andre James had 14 points each for Handley. Jackson had 11 points for Millbrook.

— Contact Robert Niedzwiecki at rniedzwiecki@winchesterstar.com Follow on Twitter @WinStarSports1