Buckley Griffins Throttle Bruins in Season Opener: A Game Recap

After a long off-season spent trying to make up for the loss of three top seniors by "re-creating them in the aggregate," Geffen Academy didn't exactly start their season the way they wanted to. While slow starts had often been undoing of the Bruins throughout their prior matches in the De Toledo Tournament, it wasn't today. Geffen Academy actually jumped out to a quick 15-8 start, buoyed by Stevan Markovic and Connor Branch. Markovic, who'd primarily shared the brunt of the scoring and distributing duties with Senior Nathan Muhumuza the past two seasons, was forced to take a bigger role with Muhumuza sidelined (reportedly until at least Thanksgiving). Branch, a junior who'd gotten a taste of what his role might look like this year during last season's playoff game, certainly looked the part and showed flashes of what he could do for this basketball team. Early, Branch not only knocked down a three, showcasing his ability to stretch the floor, but was able to thwart the Buckley interior and snag a few key defensive rebounds that kickstarted the Bruins offense.

Mason Sugimoto (#22) assisting Stevan Markovic (#15) on a three-pointer to put Geffen ahead 15-8

Unfortunately for the Bruins, the Buckley offense woke up. Taking advantage of a litany of Geffen Academy turnovers, sloppy fouls, and missed jump shots, the Griffins went on an incredible 35-8 run, spanning into the middle of the 3rd quarter. In a futile effort to spark some life into his team, head coach Devon McNairy elected to throw his first five back onto the court multiple times, in an attempt to emulate the basketball they'd played in the first quarter. But Buckley was far more confident on both sides of the floor, and quickly halted any efforts the Bruins tried to get themselves back into the game. Markovic finished with 19 points and 8 rebounds, a stat line pretty impressive considering he didn't shoot particularly well from the field. Mason Sugimoto also had a nice game off the bench, finishing with 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. He's certainly making a strong case to be moved into the starting five moving forward, especially considering he provides more physicality, which is what the Bruins are looking for. In the end, the Griffins won 70-43, although the game was all but over early in the third period. Tomorrow, Geffen Academy faces the Milken Wildcats at 3:00 - and a old friend turned foe in former Bruins point guard Michael Banooni. They'll look to rebound, and get their record back to .500 at 1-1. Well, that's all for me. Talk to you tomorrow, folks.