PENINSULA: What looked to be blowout in favor of Revere at halftime, quickly became a battle in the second half by host Woodridge. The Bulldogs were able to turn the rally into a victory after beig led by four seniors who helped spark the comeback effort.
The Bulldogs (5-5) utilized a combination of balanced scoring and forced turnovers in the second-half rally to defeat the Minutemen 66-58 at home Tuesday night. One of those seniors mentioned, guard Nelson Perry, lead the way with 15 points, and senior center Ray Mathews added 13, which helped secure the victory.
Woodridge outscored Revere 38-19 in the second on route to the win.
Balanced scoring was certainly the theme throughout the game, but it was Revere who fit that description in the first half.
Revere coach Dean Rahas said his team got too settled and relaxed once they established the early lead. The minutemen built a 16-5 lead at one point in the first quarter. But he said they began to fail in making the extra pass.
“In the first half we had better ball movement and got a higher percentage shot,” Rahas said. “But in the second half, a lot of our shots were contested.”
Forward Mike Benson converted on the offensive end for Revere, hitting timely shots as he finished in a tie for the team-high 11 points with guard Teddy Hughes.
Dylan Geig scored nine points in the first half and finished with 10 points for the game. His transition baskets were a huge catalyst for Revere’s early success.
Poor shooting and turnovers doomed Woodridge in the first half, and they found themselves down 39-28 at halftime as a result.
However, the Bulldogs proved they would not go away as they kept fighting and cutting into the lead. They captured their first lead of the game 46-45 with just 1:15 left in the third quarter and held a 49-48 advantage going into the final quarter.
The turnovers that plagued Woodridge in the first half became the turnovers Woodridge forced Revere to commit in the second half.
Rahas said the team wanted to be able to set up a press defense against Woodridge, but it never materialized.
“We just couldn’t knock down shots in the second half and that prevented us from pressuring them,” Rahas said.
Revere’s defense couldn’t keep up with the Bulldogs down the stretch. Senior forward Anthony Mong scored 11 points and senior guard Chico Coleman added 10, which highlighted five players in double figures.
Rahas said Woodridge did a great job of working the ball inside to Mathews, which came as a result of “lack of ball pressure and playing behind the offensive player,” he said.
“We need to be more disciplined offensively,” Rahas said. “I told the guys after the game: lack of discipline is why we lost this game.”
The loss drops Revere to (1-10) who travels to play Tallmadge Friday.
