Late free throws boost No. 6 Cavs; poor shooting dooms 8th-ranked Eagles By Pat O'Malley Sun Staff Originally published February 9, 2003 McDonogh coach Matt MacMullan had a tough time dealing with his host and No. 8 Eagles' 53-44 loss to No. 6 Archbishop Spalding yesterday in a key Baltimore Catholic League/Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference game. "I was frustrated with the way we lost, because I felt we had some shots we should make and didn't make," said MacMullan, whose Eagles shot just 2-for-16 (12.5 percent) from the field in the third period, 6-for-27 (22 percent) in the second half and 16-for-55 (29 percent) overall. Spalding didn't shoot much better (15-for-42, 36 percent), but won the game on the foul line in the final period. Will Bowers led the Cavaliers with a game-high 17 points, The Cavaliers, who were beginning a stretch of six games in nine days, including a noon contest today at No. 18 Cardinal Gibbons, converted 10 of 12 at the line to outscore the Eagles 14-6 in the last eight minutes. The result left the two teams and No. 3 Mount St. Joseph tied in the loss column atop the combined circuit. McDonogh (22-3) is tied for first with Mount St. Joseph (22-2), whom the Eagles play host to at 6 p.m. Tuesday, at 11-2. Spalding (18-4), which has beaten McDonogh twice, is a game behind in third place at 9-2. "Everybody had to step it up because Rudy [Gay] was a little under the weather," said Spalding point guard Jesse Brooks, who had nine points and seven assists. "We handled ourselves well under pressure. Now we ... can win [the league title]." Gay, Spalding's leading scorer (14.7), is battling the flu and scored six points while playing sporadically. His two-handed dunk off a pass from Brooks with two minutes left gave the Cavaliers a 49-43 lead. McDonogh forged a 28-23 halftime lead behind Mike Popoko, who had a game-high 10 rebounds (eight defensive) and scored seven of his 11 points in the second period. Spalding started the second half with an 8-2 run, as Gus Durr, who led his team in rebounds with six, scored four of his six points. Tim Brackney's three-pointer ended the third period and gave Spalding a 39-38 lead. The 7-foot Bowers opened the final period with a basket to make it 41-38 and later made four straight free throws down the stretch. Spalding mixed in a triangle-and-two defense with a box-and-one to hold Corey Davis (12 points) scoreless in the final period. Davis had made two of his trio of three-pointers in the third period. "It was Josh Pratt's idea to go to the triangle-and-two at the end of the game and it was key to the win," said Spalding coach Mike Glick of his JV coach. McDonogh's last field goal was by Justin Drummond (eight points) with 4:30 left in the game. Copyright © 2003, The Baltimore Sun

Monday, January 27, 2003; Page D07 When Spalding Coach Mike Glick decided to go with a smaller lineup, 6-foot-6 senior forward Gus Durr took a seat on the bench -- without complaining. The Cavaliers have since won seven of nine games and Durr still managed 12 points in the team's win against St. Maria Goretti last week. "Whatever it takes to win, I'm down for it," Durr said. "There are less minutes, but I still do what I have to do. I like coming off the bench and being an offensive weapon." Spalding entered this week 15-4 and 7-2 in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association's A Conference. Although the team is led in scoring by junior Rudy Gay and senior Will Bowers, much-improved role players such as Durr and senior guard Tim Brackney have been integral to the team's success this year. Brackney, who earned a starting role midway through the season, scored a season-high 14 points in Friday's 55-51 win against St. Maria Goretti. "The last couple of years I really didn't play that much because I had seniors ahead of me," said Brackney, who made four three-pointers in the third quarter. "I told myself this is going to be the year I get a lot more playing time. I kept working hard at practice. I had the right attitude, and all of a sudden the last six, seven games I started, and I've been playing pretty good. I have a lot of confidence right now." . . . -- Heather A. Dinich © 2003 The Washington Post Company

Maryland-bound center scores 23 in 68-60 win over Houston school By Pat O'Malley Sun Staff Originally published January 21, 2003 Archbishop Spalding's boys basketball team took third place in the First Flyin' to the Hoop National Holiday Invitational Tournament with a 68-60 victory over Heritage Christian High of Houston in Dayton, Ohio, yesterday. Will Bowers led the No. 6 Cavaliers (14-4) with game-high totals of 23 points and 10 rebounds. The 7-foot center, who has signed with the University of Maryland, was 11-for-13 in free-throw attempts. Rudy Gay scored 17 points and had seven rebounds for the victors, and point guard Jesse Brooks chipped in 11 points and six assists. "Those three had great games, and Dave Douglas played phenomenal defense on Vaughn Waver of Heritage Christian," said Spalding coach Mike Glick. "Waver is a top 15 player in the nation and is going to Florida State and had 17 points, but Dave contained him. The kids did a great job bouncing back emotionally after a tough defeat [Sunday]." Spalding dropped a 48-45 decision in the semifinals to Our Savior American High School (N.Y.) on Sunday. Copyright © 2003, The Baltimore Sun

Poor-shooting Cavs lose in Ohio tournament, 48-45 From Staff Reports Originally published January 20, 2003 DAYTON, Ohio - Despite 19 points and 12 rebounds by Rudy Gay, No. 5 Archbishop Spalding dropped a 48-45 decision to Our Savior America High School (N.Y.) last night in the semifinals of the Flyin' to the Hoop National Holiday Invitational. Gay, a 6-foot-7 junior forward, also had two blocks and two steals on a poor shooting night for the Cavaliers (18-4). "We only shot 34 percent from the floor and didn't make the baskets when we needed to make them," said Spalding coach Mike Glick. "Overall, though, we did not play that bad." Will Bowers and Gus Durr had eight points each for the Cavaliers. Spalding will play in the third-place game tonight against Heritage Christian of Houston. Copyright © 2003, The Baltimore Sun

No. 5 Cavaliers beat team from Montreal; By Pat O'Malley Sun Staff Originally published January 19, 2003 Will Bowers scored a season-high 22 points to pace No. 5 Archbishop Spalding to a 61-57 victory over Champlain St. Lambert of Montreal in the opening round of the First Flyin' to the Hoop National Holiday Invitational Tournament in Dayton, Ohio, yesterday. Bowers, the Cavaliers' 7-foot center who is headed to the University of Maryland, also had seven rebounds and three blocked shots. "The difference in the game was the second period when we outscored them 22-9 and had an 11-0 run to end the first half," said Spalding coach Mike Glick, whose team also had a 19-for-27 advantage from the foul line. St. Lambert (15-3) was 6-for-10 . "Having an eight-point lead [32-24] to start the second half meant a lot," Glick said. Spalding (13-3) plays 6:15 tonight vs. Our Savior America of New York in the national bracket of the tournament. Spalding junior forward Rudy Gay scored 17 points, matched Bowers in rebounds and blocks, and also had five steals.