The boys basketball team defeated the Crystal Springs Warriors 67-62 in a close game, securing their first win in CCS Open Division on Wednesday night. M-A’s relentless drives to the paint and clutch free throws secured the Bears’ victory in a tight second half.
M-A started the game on defense, but quickly gained possession, and a swift shot by senior point guard Jacob Sutton granted the Bears the first points of the game. The score started out tight in the first few minutes of the quarter, but a fast break layup by senior power forward Jerry Williams was able to M-A in rhythm, setting the Bears up with an early 8-5 lead.
The Bears’ offensive success, which included a three-pointer from Sutton, forced the Warriors to call a timeout as M-A continued to build on a commanding 16-5 advantage. The Bears’ swarming defense kept the Warriors out of the paint, and a smooth jumper by senior shooting guard Luca Auer concluded the first quarter with M-A dominating 22-8.
Crystal Springs entered the second quarter with new intensity, upping their defensive pressure and making an offensive push. Despite this, the Bears kept working the ball around to find open shots, allowing junior shooting guard Leighton Carpenter to sink a three-pointer to bring the score to 30-17.
However, M-A was feeling the heat. Crystal Springs made numerous buckets and drew two shooting fouls, one on a three-point shot, giving them three easy points and cutting the Bears’ lead to just five points, 32-27, to end the half.
The Warriors kept up their intensity to begin the third quarter, starting off with a quick three-pointer that further dwindled M-A’s lead, 32-30. However, the Bears weren’t ready to give up, and a rebound shot by senior center Will Abdella pushed M-A to regain their offensive momentum.
With five minutes left in the third quarter, Williams dished the ball to Auer for a four-point play, bringing the score to 40-33. After a hard drive to the rim, Williams found senior shooting guard Bryce Winters, who made the one more pass, allowing Auer to bury a three from the wing.
After the Bears called a timeout at the end of the third, they were met with full-court pressure by the Warriors on the inbound. However, Sutton remained unfazed and was able to tactically weave through the defenders and score a mid-range shot.
Following another impressive fast-break layup by Sutton with a minute left, Crystal Springs made an unsuccessful attempt to score. Williams capitalized on this, sinking a three-pointer with three seconds on the clock as the Bears ended the third quarter ahead 56-41.
Going into the fourth quarter, both teams were desperate to come out on top, relentlessly trading blows in an effort to hold their ground on defense.
Foul trouble for M-A’s bigs early in put the Warriors in bonus and allowed them two easy points halfway through the fourth quarter, but a quick inbound from Williams to Sutton to the center of the key for an and one brought the score 61-52.
Momentum shifted when a spate of personal fouls and precise shots by Crystal Springs put the Bears on their heels. With 2:07 on the clock, the Warriors forced a timeout, scheming to crack the Bears’ 63-57 advantage.
Despite M-A’s relentless defensive pressure, the Warriors managed to squeeze through with two tough shots, including a three-pointer, that turned the game into a 63-62 nail-biter with just 30 seconds remaining.
Back-to-back fouls by Crystal Springs put both teams into bonus, sending Sutton to the line with the chance to give the Bears some breathing room. He delivered, knocking down both free throws and extending M-A’s lead to 65-62, before calling a high-stakes timeout.
As he stood on the free throw line, Sutton kept his head clear and eyes on the prize. “Win. That’s all I’m thinking. I’m just thinking, how are we gonna get this done? And we came together, and we got it done,” he said.
After the timeout, the Warriors drove to the basket but came up empty. An M-A foul on the shot sent them to the line with 10 seconds remaining, but both were no good.
With just nine seconds left in the game, Williams drew a foul while battling for the rebound. He stepped up to the line and, like Sutton, calmly sank both. Despite the Warriors’ relentless attempts to keep their hopes alive with three consecutive boards, they couldn’t find the bottom of the net, and the Bears won 67-62.
“It feels great [to win] because our seeding goes up, and there’s a lot of people talking about how we’re not an open ready team, and we proved that we are by winning,” Winters said.
“I think we all put all our effort down, and at this point in the year, I think grit is really the only thing you need,” Abdella said.
The Bears will now move on to state, with their opponent yet to be decided.
