Strong Second Half Lifts Centerville Over Beavercreek 49-29

[SFIND]

By Bryant Billing

DAYTON- In low scoring affairs like this, points just carry that much more meaning. But when you score 29 points? Any way you look at, 29 points is 29 points. Too bad for the Beavercreek Beavers. Beavercreek (12-11) scored only 15 points in the first half and 14 points in the second half. That was a result of tough Centerville (20-2) defense, and bad shooting. It was not nearly enough to upset the second seed Centerville Elks, and the Beavers lost 49-29 in the sectional finals.

The game stayed close for awhile.

Beavercreek cut Centerville's lead to one at the end of the first 10-9, thanks to and basket by Alex Marolo at the buzzer. Centerville responded by starting the second quarter on an 8-0 run. The Elks had a 21-15 lead at the end of the second quarter.

Beavercreek tried to make a comeback, but never did. Centerville won a back and forth third quarter 10-7, as neither team could get anything going offensively. The Elks sealed the deal with a strong fourth quarter, winning it 28-14. That made the final of 49-29.

You know bad things happened when you had three leading scorers, at 6 points apiece. Add in the fact that the rest of the team didn't even match those 18 points, and you have one poor offensive outing. That was what happened to the Beavercreek Beavers.

Centerville played like the typical controlled team they are. The Elks were always able to counter a Beavercreek basket, and kept pressure on Beavercreek at all times, which resulted in a confused Beavercreek, inefficient offense.

This was an example of how a defense is supposed to run. Centerville was able to completely dominate the Beavers defensively, many times holding them to one-shot possessions. Beavercreek struggled all night getting rebounds, as 6'8 UD verbal Matt Kavanaugh controlled the boards for the Elks. He also led the Elks in scoring with 16 points.

Both teams had many opportunities to score more in this game. There were a total of 51 free-throw attempts, and only 25 were made. Beavercreek only made 7, a big reason why they couldn't score that much. That is a big key to winning, and the Beavers didn't convert.

An example occurred in the second quarter. Centerville coach Jim Staley had a technical foul called on him for arguing a call. This could be a perfect opportunity to swing the momentum, especially since Beavercreek received two foul shots. However, they missed both foul shots, and they turned the ball over on their next possession. Not the way to win a game.

Tommy Kramer, Alex Marolo, and Kyle Eakins all had 6 points apiece for Beavercreek. Kavanaugh led Centerville with 16, while Patrick Crawford followed that up with 8 points.

Centerville now advances to the District Finals. The Elks will play the winner of the Princeton/Middletown game next Saturday, March 1, at 6:00. The game is at the University of Dayton Arena.

Individual Scoring: Beavercreek- Tommy Kramer 6; Alex Marolo 6; Kyle Eakins 6; Alex Arthur 2; Brad Sundstorm 2; Anthony Valerio 3; Mike Hauschild 2; KC Christiansen 2. Centerville- Patrick Crawford 8; Alex Knicely 1; Andrew Kubaszewski 6; Billy Reilich 1; Mike Griffin 4; Craig Ashworth 4; Greg White 7; Adam Repologle 2; Matt Kavanaugh 16.