Kajan Thiruthanikasalam (Sports Writer, Colts Athletics)
SCARBOROUGH, ONT.- It would seem like an easy win for the Centennial Colts against the La Cite Coyotes, if only by looking at their records. But despite that, it was not like that as the game provided a frantic finish.
Centennial, however, came out on top, though not without a huge scare.
Despite blowing an early 16 point lead, the Centennial Colts (3-1) hung on for a 96-93 win over the La Cite Coyotes (0-5) at the Athletic and Wellness Centre, which is their third consecutive win.
"I think our guys learned the lesson to take every opponent seriously regardless of their record," Colts head coach Trevor Challenger said. "The guys knew this would have been a tough game. Even though La Citie is (winless), they are hungry for a win. Our guys had a mental lapse in the third quarter, missing defensive rotations and assignments."
The trio of Bailey Burton (forward), Kendall Wilson (shooting guard), and Alastair Cole (forward) combined for 69 points as their offensive output keyed Centennial to the win. Challenger is pleased with the offense from his veterans and has noted each of them has differing qualities that they provide on the offensive end.
"(We) just come every game looking to be aggressive," Cole said.
"We all know that we have to be the scorers coming (into the game)," Burton said. "We just have to focus on getting each other the ball, playing for each other and it's going to keep on working the way it is (right now)."
"Burton, Wilson and Cole have found their groove offensively which is great," Challenger said. "Right now, they're trying to lock in defensively which is where we need them to be. Both Wilson and Cole are aggressive on the wings which makes it difficult for teams to be comfortable. Burton provides his fifth year experience and savviness which rubs off on our younger players."
Burton, in particular, only missed one shot overall (10-11) and finished with a game high 25 points, continuing his solid offensive start to the season.
"I'm getting more minutes this year," Burton said. "I came in this year in better condition and in better shape and going hard in practice so that I'm ready for games. I'm also being mentally ready, not worrying about a missed shot and letting the game come to me."
Wilson scored 24 points and had a game high four steals while Cole had 20. Point guard Jahshua McFarlane led the way with nine assists and tied with Burton for the game high in rebounds, with eight.
Forward Walshak Yusef was the only other Colt that scored in double figures with 10 points, including a game high three blocks. His rim protection and efficient scoring (5-6 from the field) was critical in the absence of injured centre Malique Hyde.
"Walshak is playing like a beast. He is tough, gritty, aggressive, and plays his heart out every game," Challenger said. "(He) has been battling, especially versus bigger players. We're very pleased with his play."
The Coyotes were led by forward Junior Masudi, who had a team high 23 points, as five players scored in double digits for La Cite.
Centennial shot 44.8 per cent from the field despite committing 18 turnovers and had 13 steals. They also out rebounded La Cite, 53-44.
The Colts had their best offensive half of the season as they ended the first half shooting 53.3 per cent from the field and 40 per cent from behind the arc and were up by as many as 16 while forcing the Coyotes to shoot 36.4 per cent from the field for the half.
"There were about three areas that led to a hot shooting half," Challenger said. "Firstly, our guys defended the paint well. They got their hands on deflections and loose balls forcing La Cite to turnover the ball which led to scores. Secondly we pushed the ball in transition extremely well led by Jahshua McFarlane, Parker Brooks and Daniel Humphrey. (Thirdly), with them pushing the ball, they were able to pass the ball to Wilson (and) Cole."
"The team's a lot more deeper than I was on before," Wilson said, referring to his time previously with the Colts. "When I was on the team before, we just had the starting lineup. I feel like now, you can throw guys in and we won't miss a beat."
A layup from Burton at the buzzer made it 54-39 for Centennial heading into intermission. Wilson and Burton had 12 in the half while McFarlane had seven assists.
Trouble started brewing for Centennial as La Cite started to get their offensive rhythm going, getting multiple offensive rebounds and easy baskets at the rim. La Cite outscored Centennial, 29-20, in the quarter but behind Cole's eight points in the quarter, Centennial still held a 74-68 lead heading into the final frame.
"Unfortunately we're in a tough spot when it comes to rebounding," Challenger said, as starting centre Malique Hyde is out with an injury. "We're still working on our rebounding game so we can contend with bigger and more athletic teams."
La Cite also outscored Centennial, 27-15, from beyond the arc throughout the game. And although La Cite shot just 26.5% from behind the arc, some of those looks were wide open, especially in the second half.
A layup from Wilson extended the Colts' lead to eight before La Cite pulled off 11 straight points, taking their first lead of the game at 79-76, finally forcing Challenger to call a timeout, their first of the second half.
"I allowed the guys to regroup and try to figure it out," Challenger said about not calling a timeout earlier. "In the timeout we did call, it was just to regroup and remind them about execution and finishing the game."
Wilson then hit consecutive layups to put the Colts back up one and forced a Coyotes timeout but La Cite made a putback layup off a missed three point attempt to retake the lead at 81-80.
Centennial then took back the lead for good as they scored the next eight points, highlighted by a transition dunk from Cole as it forced yet another timeout from La Cite.
The Colts then held a seven point lead (94-87) with 20.4 seconds left in the game after Cole tipped in a missed free throw from McFarlane. But La Cite was not going to go down quietly as back to back triples from forwards Ylane Kouassi and Maleek Ekumba, with a pair of missed free throws from Burton in between, brought the lead down to one.
Wilson was then intentionally fouled but made both his free throws. However, La Cite now had a chance to send the game to overtime. Coyotes guard Pascal Belony pulled up for a three from straight away but McFarlane had other ideas, sending the shot back and the Coyotes' hopes of a comeback win.
However, Challenger says that the effort against the Coyotes today will not fly against the 5-0 George Brown Huskies on Wednesday night, who are ranked first in the OCAA East currently and are led by OCAA East Division Coach of the Year Jonathan Smith.
"We need to rebound, defend the drive and get back in transition," Challenger said. "GBC will be hard to beat if we can't do those few things."
Burton, Cole and Wilson agree.
"No matter what team it is that we play, we've got to act like we're playing the number one team in the league," Burton said.
"We've got to come out like we're down 30 every game," Cole said.
"Our defense wasn't good today so we got to pick that up for Wednesday's game against George Brown," Wilson said. "Rebounding killed us and we didn't shoot well in the second half."
Up Next for Centennial: On the road against the George Brown Huskies on Wednesday Nov. 8, at 8:00pm