In a battle of size versus speed, the quicker No. 1 Sophomores at Holy Cross withstood a second half surge from No. 4 D.G.P. to earn the 21-17 win. With the win, the defending champions advance to the championship game and keep their hopes of repeating alive.
"Today the key was just to play strong and play as a team," Holy Cross sophomore Alajowon Edwards said. "It was a big challenge for us today, so we had to play as a unit."
Sophomores at Holy Cross jumped out to an early 5-1 lead and never relinquished that lead the entire game. They dominated the first half, leading 11-5 at the break. D.G.P. clearly showed its frustration, as it was assessed a technical foul midway through the first half after shoving Sophomores at Holy Cross' Beau Bauer. Bauer and Holy Cross sophomore Darrell McIntyre led the team in scoring in the first half, each contributing three points.
Defensively, Edwards said the key was constant motion to tire out the bigger and older D.G.P.
"We just kept moving," Edwards said. "[The goal was to] get the bigs out of the paint. They were slow so we just had to find a way to get them out of the paint."
The chippy play continued in the second half, prompting D.G.P. big man Chris Stewart to plead, "No white on white crime" after Bauer and second year law student Brian Pasciak got tangled up fighting for a rebound.
D.G.P. never quit though, and fought back in the second half, cutting Sophomores at Holy Cross' lead to 17-14. However, it was too little too late for D.G.P., as Bauer sunk a jumper from behind the arc to seal the win for Sophomores at Holy Cross.
With the win, the dream of winning back-to-back championships is now closer than ever.
"It would mean a lot, we work hard out here," Edwards said. "It would just be a good feeling, that's all."
Despite all the success, McIntyre still sees room for improvement for his squad.
"We need to stop settling for jump shots and make our free throws," McIntyre said.
Sophomores at Holy Cross will look to defend its title against Romeo Medical Clinic on Saturday night at 7 p.m. in the Bookstore Basketball championship game.
No. 2 Romeo Medical Clinic 21, No. 3 Team 3 15
In a back-and-forth battle all the way until the end, No. 2 Romeo Medical Clinic defeated No. 3 Team 3 to advance to the championship game. Junior Dom Romeo credited the win to defense and a strong second half.
"We really played together well as a unit," Romeo said. "In the second half we came out and played great team defense. The second half was the difference. We came out, played physical defense, started moving on offense, and we passed the ball really well. That ultimately was the difference."
Romeo Medical Clinic jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead before Team 3 found its shot and came back from the early deficit to take a 7-6 lead. Team 3 exhibited impressive shooting ability off the dribble, and paired that with phenomenal defense led by senior and former Irish basketball player Mike Broghammer to take an 11-10 lead into the half.
Romeo Medical Clinic came out flying in the second half, aided by a few friendly tip-ins by junior Tom Hickey and several key jump shots by juniors Tim Fulnecky and Jack Gardner.
"[It was a] strong team effort," junior Tom Hickey said. "Jump shots by Tim Fulnecky really opened up their zone. Jack Gardner hit some huge shots; he really came to play today. Tim Fulnecky and Jack Gardner were the key in this game, they came up huge."
All game long Romeo Medical Clinic refused to allow big-man Mike Broghammer to factor into the game, limiting him to just two points and two blocks. Hickey said the team planned all along on taking Broghammer out of the game.
"We made a conscious effort to be extra physical with him," Hickey said. "We had some help down low. We came in with a game plan. We know Dom [Romeo] is a real strong presence down there, and then we just played pitter-patter with his hands when he had his back to the basket."
Now that Romeo Medical Clinic has advanced to the championship game, Romeo believes his team just has to focus on its own game.
"We just have to keep playing like we're playing," Romeo said. "At this point, we've kind of forgotten how to lose, so we hope that continues."
Romeo Medical Clinic will take on Sophomores of Holy Cross on Saturday night at 7 p.m. for the Bookstore Basketball championship.
Contact Alex Wilcox at awilcox1@nd.edu
