Five Takeaways: McDonogh vs Gerstell
The Gerstell Falcons traveled to Owings Mills to take on the McDonogh Eagles in what would be their fourth-straight game taking on a member of the MIAA A Conference. The Falcons were fresh off of a comeback victory against Gilman and were looking to keep the ball rolling. McDonogh lost their opener Tuesday night against St. Paul’s, so the Eagles were hoping to claim their first victory of the season.
The Eagles came out on top by a final score of 62-49. Here are five takeaways:
Drew Green puts on an efficiency clinic
Not only did Green lead all scorers in the game with 19 points, he did so by shooting 6-for-8 from the field and 7-for-8 from the charity stripe. Green isn’t the type of player that’s going to force a jumper, instead he wait until the defense is rotating and attacks the rim. Or, as seen in tonight’s game, capitalizes off of offensive rebounds he gathers by sneaking behind the opposing players. The junior guard was the boost of energy the Eagles needed to fend off the multiple runs made by Gerstell.
Ahmad Harrison is a special freshman
Harrison was one of the most anticipated freshmen coming into this season. In this particular game, he showed flashes of why the hype was real. After halftime, Harrison came out aggressively on defense, forcing a turnover by Noah Locke and finishing a lay up plus the foul. He led the Falcons with 14 points to go with five rebounds and four assists. Of course there are instances where he looks like a freshman, but that is expected. As he continues to get used to the pace and physicality of the varsity level, Harrison is going to be a very exciting and skilled player to watch.
Noah Locke still making adjustments
After struggling in the season opener scoring nine points, Locke finished with 15 against Gerstell. It’s no secret that he is one of the best shooters in the country, so every team that plays McDonogh is going to face guard him or even show consistent double teams every time he catches the ball. Locke saw plenty of this tonight, but he countered that approach by pulling down rebounds and taking it coast-to-coast. In the first quarter, he grabbed one of his eight rebounds, sprinted down the middle of the floor dodging defenders and finished with a one-handed slam that ignited the gym and got the Eagles out to an early lead. It’ll continue to be an adjustment for him to attack opposing defenses, but as long as McDonogh is racking up wins, it shouldn’t be an issue.
McDonogh dominates on the rebounding game
On the box score sheet, a lot of people’s eyes go right for the points column. But there are plenty of other factors that going into determining who won a game, and rebounding is a huge piece. The Eagles out-rebounded Gerstell tonight 47-28. McDonogh is one of the smallest teams you’ll find in the MIAA A Conference, but they did a great job of getting early positioning on their match up and boxing out. Because they want to get out and run every chance they get, securing the rebound is the most important part. There was a stretch where they did an excellent job of forcing the Falcons into contested shots and limiting them to one attempt. Rebounding was a main ingredient in their recipe for success.
Don’t judge Gerstell off their record
Gerstell now falls to 1-4 on the season. All of their games have been against MIAA A Conference teams. While they have plenty of solid seniors that they lean on that include Brad Witt and Collin Rimel, they also depend heavily on freshmen Ahmad Harrison and Karell Booker. From here on out, their schedule isn’t as harsh and it’ll give them a chance to gain some momentum and confidence heading into MIAA B Conference play. This team has the talent and mixture of youth and experience to be a very difficult match up going forward.