Community Corner

Sloppy Second Half Dooms Bruins

Langley erases 16-point deficit, beats Lake Braddock in regional quarterfinals

Before any time ticked off the clock in Langley’s Northern Region quarterfinal game against Lake Braddock at home Wednesday, the Saxons held a two-point lead. When the game ended, Langley held that same two-point advantage.

In the 32 intervening minutes, the pendulum of momentum swung from Lake Braddock’s side during the first half to Langley’s in the second, as the Saxons staged a dramatic comeback, surging from 16 points down and advancing to their third Northern Region semifinal in four years with a 58-56 win.

“I told [the players] it was the greatest everything I’ve ever been a part of,” Langley coach Travis Hess said. “The greatest comeback, the greatest finish. I’m just so proud of them.”

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Lake Braddock spotted the Langley two points, as the Bruins picked up a technical foul for dunking during warmups. Liberty District Player of the Year David Adams hit both free throws, and Braden Anderson drilled a three to stake Langley to a quick 5-0 lead. From there, the rest of the first half belonged to the Bruins.

Behind forwards Bobby Freedman and Matt Zanellato, the Bruins beat up the Saxons on the glass. Lake Braddock had more offensive rebounds in the first half than the Saxons did total boards, and with three seconds remaining before halftime, the Bruins were on cruise control, leading by 16.

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Then the momentum shifted.

Langley point guard Austin Vasiliadis banked in a half-court prayer at the buzzer to cut Lake Braddock’s advantage to 38-25. More than just three points, it gave Langley a much-needed boost heading into the locker room.

“We always tell the kids, it’s not the last play that wins or loses the game,” Hess said. “People remember the guy that made the last shot, but that shot was the difference in the basketball game.”

Knowing they needed to change the flow of the game, the Saxons came out in a shifting zone in the second half and a full-court press after made baskets. They scored the first four points, causing Lake Braddock coach Brian Metress to use a quick timeout. Still, the Bruins couldn’t adjust, and they didn’t do themselves any favors, missing all five of their free throw attempts in the third.

“We want to be sped up, but we lost our poise,” Metress said. “We want a fast breaking, high-tempo game. They attacked us and we turned it over. That’s our fault.”

Langley slowed down Corey Bonds, who torched the Saxons for 12 points in the first half. He didn’t score until more than five minutes into the third quarter and had just four points in the second half. Zanellato scored all six of the Bruins points in the third, but Langley cut the lead to 44-38 heading to the fourth.

Hess proved prescient in his talk to his team at halftime, as he had a specific goal in mind for the defensive changes he made.

“I told the kids at halftime, ‘I have a number in my head as to what [the lead] has to be at the fourth quarter for us to have a chance.’ The number was six.”

Langley still had to cut down that six, and they did it with more of the same defense, including the press that they hadn’t run in Hess’ entire tenure at the school. Brandon Dwyer hit three big jumpers in the fourth, and a steal and layup by Jeff Cochran cut the Bruin lead to two. Langley finally took the lead again after a 3-point play be Daniel Dixon with just less than two minutes remaining, putting the Saxons up 53-52. The lead pinballed back and forth, but Dwyer’s jumper from the short corner gave the Saxons a 57-56 lead with 47 seconds left.

A stop by the Saxons and one made free throw by Dixon extended the lead to two with 3.7 seconds left. Then Bonds made a fatal mistake, running along the end line as he attempted to inbound the pass after a timeout. A player can only run the end line after a made basket, so he was whistled for traveling, giving the ball back the Saxons and essentially sealing the game.

After playing crisp basketball in the first half, the Bruins turned the ball over 13 times and missed 12 free throws in the final two quarters.

“We were just talking about it at halftime, and the seniors, we don’t want this to be our last game, especially not at home,” Cochran said. “It was all effort, and Coach Hess made some great defensive calls.

Dwyer led the Saxons with 13 points, Adams had 12 and Cochran had 10. Zanellato and Bonds each had 16 for Lake Braddock, with Freedman adding 15.

Langley moves on to face another Patriot District foe in the semifinals in Annandale. The Liberty District is constantly overlooked in the Northern Region, but Langley is one win away from its second straight trip to the state tournament.

“We think [Annandale] is one of the best teams we’ve seen play all year,” Hess said. “They beat Mount Vernon [in the quarterfinals] by 20. They’ve got the Ziegler kid, the Boyce kid. They’re going to spread you out. It’s going to be a heck of a game. We’re going to enjoy this one right now and start working on a game plan tomorrow.”


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