Execute and Finish

Stop James Patterson.

 

After all, in the first half of Collegiate’s thrilling, come-from-behind 54-52 victory over Church Hill Academy Friday evening, the Phantoms’ stellar 6-4 senior guard had scored 18 of his team’s 27 points.

 

He’d worked the inside. He’d dropped a twisting floater from the lane following a sweet move near the top of the key. He’d drained a pair of three-pointers, including one at the buzzer to send his guys into halftime with a 27-24 lead.

 

Yes, stop him, the Cougars must. How, though? That was the question.

 

“He’s a very talented player,” said Collegiate coach Del Harris. “He’s one of the best players in the area. We had to deny him…not let him get the ball.”

 

After the break, the Cougars threw a variety of defensive looks at the visitors: some man-to-man, a variety of zone looks, and some half-court trap designed to force longer passes, and, consequently, picks for the backside defenders.

 

“We played multiple defenses to keep them off balance,” Harris explained. “They’re a well-coached team. They’ve played 20-plus games. They were ready to play. They did a really good job. We were able to execute.”

 

True…and just in the nick of time.

 

The Phantoms opened the third quarter with the poise and vigor with which they ended the second and, despite the Cougars’ intensified defensive efforts, held a 41-33 advantage when Wendell Tomlin sank a pair of free throws at 3:54.

 

“We talk about what will break you,” Harris said. “Does a turnover break you? Does a missed shot break you? A bad foul? A missed layup? We just stayed together. You can bend, but you can’t break. We were on the verge of going down double digits.

 

“We hung in there. We kept our composure. That’s a testament to them. I’m proud of them. That’s how we’re going to have to win all year. Two words: Execute and Finish.”

 

With the Cougars trailing by eight points, senior guard Jalen Pierce hit a 3-pointer from the left wing at 3:35 to cut CHA’s lead to 41-36.

 

Next possession: same…thanks to a favorable bounce off the rim and backboard.

 

At 1:20, 6-8 Luke Smith swished a 3-ball from the right wing for a 42-41 lead.

 

O’Dell Goodman’s bucket off an inside move at 0:13 sent the visitors up 43-42 after three quarters, but the Cougars, thanks to their 11-4 run, were definitely in the chase.

 

“I was confident in my ability to shoot the ball,” said Pierce, who finished with 16 points including four 3-pointers. “I know that our team can shoot really well. If we were able to run to our spots and get the open shots, I knew we were able to knock it down. Once you see one go through, the rest of it’s easy.”

 

The lead changed hands five times in the final period.

 

With Collegiate trailing 47-46 with 3:30 remaining, Colin Ryan scored from close range off a pass by Smith from the top of the key. Tomlin answered with a 3-pointer from the left baseline at 2:25 to put the Phantoms up 50-48.

 

At 2:03, John Wootton followed a missed shot with a stickback to even the score.

 

At 1:45, the Phantoms went up 52-50 when Le’khi Eddins hit a layup off an inbounds pass from Tomlin.

 

The Cougars responded when Smith drove the lane and dropped an off-balance, in-traffic layup over the rim at 0:45.

 

After an exchange of possessions and with the clock ticking and the action at fever pitch, Patterson lofted a jumper from above the key under pressure, but it missed its mark.

 

As Smith secured the rebound in a crowd, Ryan broke long, Smith delivered a well-placed dart into his outstretched hands, and a dribble later, he banked the ball off the glass with 11.3 seconds left.  

 

Before it could fall through the rim, though, Patterson swatted it away. No worries. Two points. Goaltending.

 

“We’d been getting tough rebounds all game, especially in that second half,” Ryan said. “Once I saw it (the rebound) was going towards him (Smith) and he got two hands on it, I just took off down that right side.

        

“He had a perfect long outlet pass to me. James Patterson was trailing. He’s a really athletic kid. My main thing was to get it to hit the backboard. If it hits the backboard and he touches it, it’s goaltending.”

 

The Phantoms had one last shot.

 

At 0:04, Patterson, under pressure, lofted a desperation jumper from atop the key. Smith got a hand on the rebound and deflected it outside. Pierce corralled it on the right side and dribbled out the clock.

 

“The people who weren’t guarding the man with the ball had to make sure to get the rebound,” said Smith, who finished with 22 points, 16 boards, and three assists. “It was going to come off strong. It was pretty much grab the ball and get it.”

 

Since the Cougars fell to Varina in the 804 Coaches for Change Community Classic December 23, they’ve traveled a devious path marked by injuries, illnesses, missed practices because of weather, and three missed games resulting from Covid protocols.

 

The rust was evident early on. In the first quarter, the Phantoms forced seven Collegiate turnovers. The Cougars finished with 13. They hit 18-of-47 shots, allowed CHA 20-of-50, and controlled the boards 36-20.

 

“We have a lot of seniors, a lot of leadership, a lot of experience,” Pierce said. “Because we weren’t able to play last year, we weren’t able to see how good we really were. We’ve had a lot of ups and downs, but we’ve stuck together, battled through it all, and here we are today.”