Standouts: Deerfield Beach vs St. Thomas Aquinas
Back into gear out of the holiday, the Deerfield Beach Bucks traveled down I-95 to take on the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders. Deerfield Beach used a strong offensive first half to fend off the Raiders for a 70-47 victory. The…
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Continue ReadingBack into gear out of the holiday, the Deerfield Beach Bucks traveled down I-95 to take on the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders. Deerfield Beach used a strong offensive first half to fend off the Raiders for a 70-47 victory.
The Bucks took control out of the gate against the Raiders Zone, connecting on multiple 3-pointers led by Degarrian Glass (2020) and Rowan Rowe (2020). Deerfield Beach really opened this game up in the second quarter with a 21-11 eight minutes. The Raiders fought hard and played better in the second half led by (2021) Tristan Goldstein. STAQ played even with the Raiders in third quarter (15-15) and closed out the final eight minutes to the Bucks 18-14. The win gives Deerfield Beach a 3-0 start to the season.
Here are five standouts from the game:
- Degarrian Glass – Deerfield Beach: Glass scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half, taking control of the Bucks offense during the decisive second quarter. The senior stretched the Raider zone from deep, enabling the Bucks to take a 37-18 lead at the break. Point to the Bucks guard play as a huge difference in this game (see below).
- Rowan Rowe – Deerfield Beach: Like Glass, Rowe was able to hit the Raiders from deep early on. The senior hit a pair of 3-pointers in the first half and finished with a team high 14 points. Along with Glass, I was impressed with his ability to shoot the ball and break down the defense in the lane for some layup opportunities.
- Tristan Goldstein – St. Thomas Aquinas: As reported in my profile piece, Goldstein is a tough kid and he showed it in the first half against the Bucks. The junior drove to the basket multiple times and picked up his first seven points from the charity stripe. His aggressiveness was one of the highlights in the first half for the Raiders and should be a staple in his game throughout the season. His final basket came from three as he finished with a game high 20 points.
- Andrew Akuchie – St. Thomas Aquinas: Only a sophomore, Akuchie showed glimpses of his versatility against Deerfield Beach. Akuchie went down the center of the lane for a dunk and hit a three to finish with five points. On defense, Akuchie appeared to disrupt some of the Bucks field goals with his length around the rim. The sophomore can do a lot of different things on both ends of the floor and it should only improve as the season progresses.
- Depth of Deerfield Beach: It was hard to pick another standout for Deerfield Beach, mainly because the Bucks saw eight other players along with Rowe and Glass score in the first half alone. Junior Stephen Mereus finished with ten points while seniors Derek Miller and Marshuan West chipped in with nine and seven points respectively. Getting production from your starters as well as your bench is a nice asset to have if you are Deerfield Beach moving forward throughout the season.