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Dwight Buycks Jr. stood on the baseline getting ready to inbound the ball. Buycks Jr. looked towards the paint, where a couple of Boeheim’s Army players were cutting, but Team Gibson clogged the area.

By swarming the paint, Jamil Wilson was unaccounted for, as he ducked behind the 3-point line wide open. Spotting him, Buycks Jr. fired the inbound pass into Wilson’s shooting pocket, and he smoothly capitalized, draining the 3-pointer to give Boeheim’s Army their 30th point of the second quarter and a 48-29 lead with 25 seconds remaining in the first half.

Despite a sluggish start, where they trailed by as many as 11 points in the first quarter, Boeheim’s Army blew out Team Gibson 99-83 advancing to the semi-final of the Syracuse region in The Basketball Tournament. Making their TBT debut, Team Gibson started the game strong, but a 16-5 run by Boeheim’s Army to close the first quarter knotted the game at 18 apiece, and then Boeheim’s Army outscored Team Gibson 81-65 in the final three quarters.

“You see a lot of teams kind of start slow in this (tournament),” Jimmy Boeheim said. “Guys are just trying to find their rhythm, work with each other and it’s just trying to find that rhythm out there. Once we saw a few go in, we got a couple of stops everyone settled down a little bit.”

Boeheiem’s Army struggled to get anything going offensively in the first few minutes of the game. In the game’s first three minutes, they only managed two points and turned the ball over twice.

While BA was stagnant on offense, Team Gibson was scorching hot – especially from deep – making five of its first seven shots while draining three triples. In the blink of an eye, Boeheim’s Army trailed by double digits, as Team Gibson jumped out to a 13-2 lead.

Boeheim drained a slick right-handed floater, ending BA’s nearly three-minute scoring drought. BA responded by forcing consecutive turnovers. On the offensive end, Boeheim’s Army punished Team Gibson in transition after both turnovers, as a pair of fast break layups pulled the game to 13-8 at the first media timeout with 4:00 left in the quarter.

Team Gibson responded well out of the timeout, inching out to an 18-10 lead after Ja’Quaye James nailed a pull-up 3-pointer with 2:34 left in the quarter. Boeheim’s Army responded with defensive intensity and a rejuvenated offense. Chris McCullough drove baseline with six seconds left in the quarter for BA’s third straight successful trip down the court, tying the game at 18.

After grinding their way back to close the first quarter, Boeheim’s Army remained aggressive to start the second. The two teams traded scores on the first four possessions opening the second quarter, but BA took their first lead of the game on Andrew White’s first 3-point make, and his first of Boeheim’s Army-leading four 3-pointers made.

On the ensuing possession, Grant Riller picked Elgin Cook’s pocket on the defensive end, leading to White picking up another two points on an open layup. Following another turnover from Team Gibson, this time from Cook traveling, Riller capitalized on the offensive end, finishing at the rim to give BA a five-point lead 1:51 into the second quarter.

McCullough couldn’t capitalize on an open 3-point attempt after Boeheim’s Army, but after forcing a missed layup from Darious Hall, Boeheim’s Army got out in transition, leading Riller to score a driving layup.

Looking to erase Riller’s personal 4-0 run, Kelechi Ajukwa took a contested 3-pointer late in the shot clock, and White corralled the rebound. On the other end of the floor, White capitalized again, drilling another 3-pointer. Team Gibson called a timeout, as they trailed by 10 after once leading by 11.

“We have a lot more size out on the wings, so just being versatile, being able to switch one through four, being able to contain the ball and rebound and contest at the rim should help us going forward,” White said.

Following their timeout, Team Gibson ended their scoring drought, scoring on two straight possessions, but Boeheim’s Army didn’t let them cut into their lead, as Riller and Buycks Jr. rattled home layups to keep BA’s lead at 10.

Coming out of the media timeout with 3:52 left in the second quarter, Jawaun Daniels could’ve cut Boeheim’s Army’s lead to single digits after he was fouled by Riller, but he missed both of his shots from the charity stripe. Team Gibson failed to corral a defensive rebound on the other end of the court, BJ Johnson took advantage of BA’s second chance, giving them a 38-26 lead – a pivotal four-point swing.

Between Daniels’ missed free throws and the next time Team Gibson scored, Boeheim’s Army went on a 7-0 run, extending their lead to 42-26 with 1:44 left in the second quarter. The two teams traded baskets to end the half, and BA took a 48-31 lead into halftime.

Both teams started the second half slow, but a pair of made free throws by McCullough 1:50 into the quarter gave BA a 19-point lead after Riller and Mason traded layups. Following McCullough’s, free throws, Team Gibson was held scoreless on the offensive end, and Johnson capitalized for BA, drilling a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession to give Boeheim’s Army a 22-point lead.

“After we see the ball go in a couple of times, we can be really dangerous,” Johnson said.

Out of the timeout, Boeheim’s Army stayed in control, with Rakeem Christmas carrying the offense. After Navar Elmore made two free throws coming out of the timeout, Christmas responded, making a smooth two-point turnaround jumper. BA crumpled on the next defensive possession, allowing an easy dunk to Ahmed, but Christmas again responded, finishing through contact and converting at the free throw for a three-point play.

Looking to get Team Gibson going from beyond the arc, Daniels attempted a 3-pointer, but he missed, leading to a transition layup from Christmas who was fouled again, but he missed the free throw.

After Christmas’s missed free throw, BA notched a defensive stop, and again fed Christmas on the offensive end, this time with him drilling a hook shot to give Boeheim’s Army a 66-38 lead. Team Gibson hung with Boeheim’s Army in the last three minutes of the third quarter, but they still trailed by 26 points.

Throughout the fourth quarter, Boeheim’s Army continued to build on their lead, but the exclamation point came midway through the quarter. With 6:00 left in the game, Johnson received a pass and went to work.

Going downhill, Johnson attacked until he had an opening with his left hand. With Elmore tightly contesting him under the rim, Johnson punched home a dunk over Elmore, giving Boeheim’s Army an 85-60 lead and slamming any hope of Team Gibson making a comeback.

Although Team Gibson went on a run during the Elam Ending, it was too little too late as Boeheim’s Army easily took care of business in the Round of 64. On Wednesday, Boeheim’s Army will face The Nerd Team, looking to avenge their 81-74 second-round loss from last year’s tournament.

“As long as we come out and play how we did past those first three minutes, bring energy, share the ball and play together, I don’t really think that there is going to be a team that can play with us,” Johnson said.

Published on July 24, 2023 at 9:20 pm

Contact Justin: justingirshon@gmail.com | @JustinGirshon