Five Takeaways: Mt. Carmel vs Gilman
Last night, Mt. Carmel hosted Gilamn for a MIAA A Conference match up. The Hounds came into the contest as one of the hottest teams with a 4-1 record, but the Cougars rode a second half scoring explosion to overcome…
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Continue ReadingLast night, Mt. Carmel hosted Gilamn for a MIAA A Conference match up. The Hounds came into the contest as one of the hottest teams with a 4-1 record, but the Cougars rode a second half scoring explosion to overcome a 15-point deficit at halftime. Mt. Carmel won by a final score of 65-57 to improve to a 4-3 overall record and captured their first win in conference. With the loss, Gilman falls to 4-2 overall and 3-1 in conference play.
Here are five takeaways from the game.
Cougars’ special stuff
I’m not sure what was addressed in the locker room at halftime, but whatever it was helped spark a 46-point eruption in the second half. On the first three possessions, Mt. Carmel buried three triples to cut the Gilman lead to six. There was some back and fourth throughout the next 12 or so minutes until the Cougars gained control and ultimately the game. 2022 Tobi Nnadozie, 2021 Koralp Turk and 2022 Deon Perry were all key in the impressive surge.
Hinds embodies fast start from Hounds
It didn’t take long for 2020 center Roman Hinds to make his impact defensively in this game. The 6-foot-9 senior was a dominant presence on the glass as well as blocking shots in the painted area. He acted as a rim-runner on a consistent basis in transition, which ultimately forced the defense to sink in and free up perimeter shooters. As the anchor of the defense, Hinds was quarterbacking his teammates and making them aware of incoming screens or cutters. He finished with just seven points on the evening, but as stated before, his impact was felt in many other ways that become valuable to gaining the early advantage.
Nnadozie comes through when his team needed it most
Nnadozie was aggressively looking to score the ball throughout the entire game, but was unsuccessful really until the fourth quarter. The 6-foot-3 guard scored 10 of his 12 points in the final eight minutes. It was his aggression that helped in drawing fouls around the rim and cashing in at the charity stripe. When Mt. Carmel applies full court pressure, as they did in the fourth quarter, Nnadozie plays the top man and uses his active hands to cause deflections. He did that at the right time of last night’s game and his team was able to convert on those turnovers.
Gilman’s bench was productive
The Hounds don’t go very deep on their bench, but last night they played a total of nine guys. The combination of 2021 guard Rayaun Lane, 2021 guard Matt Cooper, 2020 guard Danny Rosenfield and 2020 guard Jack Tortalani combined for 24 of the teams 57 points. Cooper, Rosenfield and Tortalani all converted on three-pointers off kick-out passes while Lane scored all of his six point from the free-throw line. Considering many of the starters struggled to find their groove, this group helped pick up the slack and put Gilman in a position to win this game.
Perry and Turk connection come to fruition
2022 point guard Deon Perry and 2021 forward Koralp Turk both complement each other’s games quite well. Perry is a small, quick point guard to can slice up defenses off the dribble as well as pull-up from three. Turk is a prototypical pick-and-pop big who can get going from deep after seeing one fall. In the second half, the Cougars ran this action to exhaustion and for good reason. Turk (16 points) connected on three three’s in said fashion to help lead the comeback. Perry had only two points in the first two quarters. He scored 13 in the final two quarters, including three triples of his own. It was clear indication that if these two get going, no lead is safe.