Yesterday, against Lennox Academy, Stevan Markovic scored 43 points and had 15 rebounds. I didn't think it was possible for him to top that today. I was wrong.
For the fifth and final time this year, the Geffen Academy Bruins endured the long trek out to De Toledo High School this Thursday. While their first four games were part of the annual De Toledo tournament, today they'd get their shot against the Jaguars themselves. I mentioned yesterday that the Bruins hadn't been competitive against De Toledo in their prior meetings, and it looked like more of the same script early in this one. The Bruins fell behind 7-0 out of the gate, and then committed an atrocious error when Coach Devon McNairy was too busy conversing with his players during Connor Branch's free throws to realize that the Jaguars had their players streaking down the floor. Branch missed his second attempt, and De Toledo got an uncontested three-pointer to fall.
But Nathan Muhumuza, making his season debut, wasn't about to throw in the towel. He made a number of nifty driving layups in the first quarter, and knocked down a rare three-point basket as well. Markovic struggled to score in the first half by his standards, and Muhumuza led the way with 16 points and nine rebounds at the break. The Bruins trailed 30-25 at halftime, and considering only Branch, Muhumuza, and Markovic had scored, felt pretty good about their positioning.
Despite both Coach McNairy and assistant head coach Marshann Gordon crucifying the officials, which led to a hometown whistle, the Bruins hung around in the third quarter. Markovic found his perimeter shot, which alleviated much of the defensive pressure the Jaguars had been allocating to contain Muhumuza. But the real tide of the game shifted when Geffen Academy opted to substitute Rosstin Markzar into the game. The six-guard rotation of Markovic, Saucedo, Markzar, Muhumuza, Mason Sugimoto, and Ethan Hong proved to be the correct formula. The Bruins shifted to an even more perimeter-centric gameplan, and it led to more open shots for Markovic, who, as he's done time and time again, was able to come through.
Nathan Muhumuza (left) and Stevan Markovic (right) after their win Thursday against De Toledo
Even though the Bruins trailed 41-38 entering the fourth and final quarter, it felt like Geffen Academy was trending in the right direction. De Toledo, however, didn't go away. Muhumuza and Markovic continued to trade blows with the Jaguars guards until about a minute left, with Geffen Academy trailing 55-53. The Bruins forced a miss, and Muhumuza found Markovic on the right wing, when the junior guard calmly drained his fourth three-pointer of the period to give Geffen Academy a one-point lead. The score remained that way until there were 12.8 seconds left on the game clock, with the Bruins having possession. In an inexplicable decision, the De Toledo head coach elected to let his players try to steal the ball, rather than intentionally fouling Geffen Academy to force them to shoot free throws. Muhumuza dribbled away from a couple of defenders, before hurling a pass into the frontcourt to Mason Sugimoto.
As time ran out, Geffen Academy Upper School Division Director Matthew Vacca jumped out from his seat, pumped his fist, and yelled in jubilation. It marked the Bruins' third consecutive victory, which is likely to grow to four when they face the lowly Avalon Lancers this Saturday at Catalina Island. (There will be NO game recap, sorry). Markovic's game-winner, funny enough, was the second time a Bruins guard has nailed a go-ahead three-pointer at this arena. Noah Saucedo, of course, did it two years ago against New Roads, ALSO the Jaguars. As if that's not strange enough, listen to this. Markovic's jumper made the score 56-55. So did Saucedo's. (The similarities are actually comparable to those of the Kennedy and Lincoln assassinations. If you know, you know). But how about those Bruins? They pick up both ends of a home-road back-to-back over the last two days, and look, by far, the best they have all year. That's all for me, folks. This was a fun one. Talk to you again on Monday when the Bruins face Wildwood at 6:30.
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