BLINN MEN’S BASKETBALL WINS OPENER OVER EASTFIELD 80-78
Story by Joe Alberico, Blinn College Sports Information
The Kruse Center crowd held its breath for the final seconds of play Monday.
When Dallas College Eastfield’s last-second 3-pointer missed its mark as time expired, the Blinn College men’s basketball team – and its fans – exhaled in relief as the Buccaneers held on for a thrilling 80-78 victory in their season opener in Brenham, Texas.
“That was an exciting basketball game,” Blinn head coach Scott Schumacher said. “I thought our guys played hard and we came out on top and won. Eastfield did a good job with a lot of different stuff and gave us a great challenge, but for our first game in front of a packed house, I was pleased with the result.”
The Bucs (1-0) looked ready to shift into cruise control after sophomore guard Dashawn Ceaser gave Blinn a 76-62 lead on a 3-pointer with 5:42 remaining. The Harvester Bees refused to go away, however, and went on a furious 16-4 rally – including the final six points of the game – to close out the contest.
A pair of free throws from Bucs freshman guard Desmeon Jones that made it 80-72 ultimately proved to be the difference.
“I’m just glad the 3-pointer didn’t go in,” Jones said of the game’s final shot. “I was sitting there watching it the entire time thinking, ‘This could be the game right here.’ I was just happy for our guys that it went our way tonight.”
In the game’s opening minutes, the Bees seized momentum with a 15-8 lead. The Bucs began fighting back midway through the first half and used a 6-0 burst to jump ahead 26-24.
Eastfield would force two ties – including a 32-all deadlock on a 3-pointer – before sophomore guard Tyson Mobley hit two free throws to put the hosts ahead for good.
Near the end of the half, freshman guard Kendarius Johnson and Jones each sank a pair of shots from the charity stripe to send Blinn into the intermission with a 41-36 advantage.
The Bucs came roaring out of the break with the first six points of the second half.
Johnson scored on a layup and Ceaser tallied two free throws before burying a layup of his own to push the hosts’ lead to 47-36.
The Bucs’ cushion grew to a game-high 15 points when a trey from freshman guard Connor Sprattley made it 61-46.
“We were doing a lot of good things in the first half and early in the second,” said Sprattley, who led Blinn with 20 points. “We played hard, we moved the ball well, we attacked the basket … but when we got away from the small details and stopped following the gameplan, Eastfield was able to come back. We just need to focus more on what the coaches are telling us and on what we practice, and I think we’ll be OK going forward.”
Jones scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half. Johnson added 14 and Ceaser tacked on 10.
Blinn gets back to work with a road tilt at Western Texas College at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday in Snyder, Texas.