When Burrell and Deer Lakes squared off in December, the Bucs hit six 3s in the first half, didn’t turn the ball over and held the Lancers’ top scorers in check en route to victory.
But in Friday’s rematch on a frigid night, Burrell came out cold to start the game as Deer Lakes ran the floor in transition and used efficient offensive possessions to come away with a 70-53 win in a Section 1-4A clash.
Deer Lakes improved to 9-8, 4-4, and Burrell slipped to 8-10, 4-5.
“We took a really hard look at the film from the first time, and I tell our guys all the time, we have to be our harshest critics when we go through the film,” Lancers coach Albie Fletcher said, referring to the 52-42 loss in December. “We had a lot of self-induced mistakes the last game, forced too hard too quick. Tonight, we were super-efficient with the basketball.”
It also helps to get production from the leading scorers on the team.
In that first contest, senior guard Collin Rodgers was held to eight points and five assists, and junior forward Evan Moore scored just 12 points. Both players entered Friday averaging 19 points.
Rodgers and Moore were instrumental in fueling the Lancers attack in the first quarter as they combined for 11 points, and Deer Lakes used a 9-0 run, doing most of their damage inside the paint, to close out the first quarter with a 17-10 lead.
“Our plan was to attack the middle of their zone where I would make moves and score,” said Moore.
Said Bucs coach Mike Fantuzzo: “They isolated him at the high post to go one-on-one. But, again, we didn’t play him very physical, and he did what he wanted.”
Burrell couldn’t seem to get anything going offensively, choosing to settle for a lot of outside shots, especially from beyond the arc, looking to duplicate their success from a month ago.
“We definitely came out flat in the first half,” said Fantuzzo. “They outworked us, and when you build a deficit like that, it’s hard to overcome against a team like Deer Lakes.”
Burrell also wasn’t as clean as it was in the first matchup, turning the ball over frequently and allowing Deer Lakes to do what they love to do, which is score in transition.
“What’s funny is we were more aggressive on defense the last time we played than we were tonight,” said Fletcher. “We were much better in the half court, had a couple new wrinkles, but it was about our guys winning those individual battles.”
Deer Lakes used another 9-0 run in the second quarter to outscore the Bucs, 20-7, and found plenty of success in the paint, scoring the majority of their 37 first-half points at or near the rim.
“Our guys want to run and score points, but if you’re efficient with your possessions you can put 70 on the board, which is what they did tonight and I hope they learned that lesson,” said Fletcher. “Super proud of them for buying in, learning from our mistakes, taking it seriously and being accountable.”
Moore finished the first half with 17 points, equaling Burrell’s total. He finished with a game-high 25.
Rodgers did most of his damage down low and feeding off Moore, doubling his output form the first matchup with 16 points.
The Lancers also received some needed depth scoring as senior Luca Mangieri scored 14 points and senior Dylan Ferraro put up 10.
“I think defensively, holding them low, running out in transition, being patient and taking what they gave us was key,” said Rodgers. “You score 70 points on a team like Burrell that wants to posses the ball and hold you to 40 points, they’re not going to beat you very often.”
In the second half, Burrell was down 28 points at one point in the third quarter but cut the deficit to 50-28 as the teams went into the fourth.
Burrell outscored Deer Lakes, 36-33, after halftime.
“We need to be ready to go from the start of the game,” said Fantuzzo. “Tonight’s second half was a different story and pretty much an even matchup there.”
Senior guard Adam Wass led the Bucs in scoring, making four 3-pointers and finishing with 24 points. Junior Trey Coury added 10 points.
The loss is the second in a row for Burrell after it enjoyed a five-game winning streak.
“Our section is really good,” Fantuzzo said. “We just played Knoch and North Catholic and now Deer Lakes, who we knew coming in is a good team. It’s not like we lost to a nobody. We’re going to regroup here and get ready for next week.”
The win makes it three out of four for the Lancers and leapfrogs them over Burrell for third in the section standings. Moving forward, they know what they need to do to keep this momentum going.
“We just have to keep building,” said Rodgers. “We started out the year slowly. It’s been a different journey since then, and I’d like to remain on this trajectory we’re on now and keep impressing, keep improving.”