Blue Devils Buckle Down in Win over Braves
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- Drury boys' basketball coach Jack Racette knows at least one thing about his team this year. Nolan Bird CLICK HERE for more photos! |
"We can take our defense to any gym," Racette said after the Blue Devils showcased their defensive prowess in a 50-39 home win over Taconic in Friday night's quarterfinal game of the Division 2 Western Mass. tournament.
It's a good thing No. 4 Drury remembered to bring its defense to Bucky Bullett Gymnasium, however, because its offense didn't exactly show up in time against a Braves' team playing with nothing to lose. Taconic, which drew the No. 5 seed in the bracket despite a 7-13 record this year, jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead right off the bat and stretched that margin to nine points just a few minutes into the second quarter.
"We had a little bit of jitters, but I think it was just knowing how important the game was," Blue Devils senior Robert Jutras. "We settled in and pounded it inside a little bit. That got us going, and our defense was always there, so I just think we found a groove eventually."
Drury (11-8) didn't have anything going for a majority of the first quarter. The Braves' defensive pressure forced the hosts into several turnovers early on, which allowed Taconic to score the first six points of the game. Racette's squad didn't actually get on the scoreboard until there was 2:28 left in the first quarter, when junior Nolan Bird (10 points, six rebounds, five assists) swished a 3-pointer from the left corner. Matt Norman, who led the Braves with a game-high 16 points, burned the Blue Devils for three baskets in the paint, however, giving the visitors a 12-7 lead after the first quarter of play.
The home crowd was a little on edge, but Drury had one big card up it sleeve that it knew it could play if times got tough.
"We know we can stop people, so we're not [worried too much]," Jutras said. "We know if we get into a good set and get a good look, we're going to be in the game because our defense is going to keep us in it."
The Devils' D did just that in the second quarter, holding Taconic to just six points in the frame and allowing the hosts to take a 21-18 lead into halftime. Bird, who usually shoulders most of the scoring load for Drury, started facilitating the offense and setting up open teammates. After Norman finished off another easy basket in the paint to put the Braves up by nine points early in the second, Bird came up with three straight assists to help spark a 14-2 run to close out the first half.
"It's everybody's responsibility to be a guard," Racette said. "Jake [Tietgens] and Joel [Giorgi] were having a little bit of trouble with the pressure, but our bigs stepped up, and we let Nolan handle the ball quite a bit. That's the matchup problem people get when we start letting Nolan handle the ball away from the basket. He's not super quick, but he gets the job done. Now, he's getting the ball inside to mismatches if they play a big on him."
Drury post players Slayter Aubin and Brett Denning took advantage of those mismatches and got their team's offense going by making three straight baskets to start the Devils' 14-2 run. Denning first hit a foul-line jumper off a feed from Bird, who then set up Aubin with another mid-range shot on Drury's next possession. Aubin then knocked down a three from the top of the key to pull the hosts within two points. After Jutras made one of two foul shots, Denning gave his team the lead for good by scoring on a putback.
Aubin finished with a team-high 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Denning did most of his damage in the first half, scoring six of his eight points and grabbing three offensive rebounds before the break. The senior center definitely made a big impact off the bench for a Blue Devils' offense that was struggling to get on track early on.
"Brett could be a starter on this team, but he's taking on that role [of coming off the bench]" Racette said. "He knows what to do, and he's a big body down there. He uses it, and he's been working really hard in practice. He's gotten so much better from day one. He's absolutely a threat when he catches the ball in the post. Whereas in years past, he's been like what do I do with it."
If the second quarter was where Drury rallied, the third quarter is where the Blue Devils pulled away. Jutras really got going in third, hitting two 3-pointers and scoring seven points in all as the hosts outscored Taconic 18-11 in the frame. He ended up with 12 points and five boards, but it was his defense on Braves' guard Tyler Murphy that really had Racette gushing after the game. In the last meeting between the two teams in early February, Murphy poured in a team-high 22 points. On Friday night, however, Jutras held him to just two points the entire game, allowing just a single lay-up off a steal on Taconic's first score of the game.
"Jutras just put on a clinic the way I see it," Racette said. "Murphy had two points, and he might have the most threes in Berkshire County. I don't know, but Jutras put on a clinic defensively."
It was solid defensive effort overall for Drury, which forced 20 turnovers and took five charges in the game. The Blue Devils buckled down on defense midway through the third quarter, resulting in an 8-1 run that propelled them to 39-29 lead after three quarters. Aubin had the big play during that streak, finishing off a pick-and-roll play from Bird while being fouled. He sank the ensuing free throw to put his team up 34-23.
"Coach stresses defense every single day," Aubin said. "Defense isn't the easiest thing and a lot of kids don't want to play defense today. But he stresses that to us and the importance of working hard."
Ironically, it was Drury's loss to rival Hoosac Valley in the final game of the regular season that allowed the Braves to finish tied for second place in the North Division and earn a spot in the Western Mass. tourney. The Blue Devils made sure Taconic's inclusion didn't come back to haunt them by closing out the game in the fourth quarter. The Braves got within six points on three different occasions in the fourth, and Drury kept the game interesting by missing five out of its five seven free throws
But once again, the Devils' defense shut the door when it needed to, marking the ninth time this year that Drury has held a team to 40 points or less. With a date against top-seeded Mahar in the semifinals next week, Racette is banking on his teams' biggest strength in order to keep the Blue Devils' season alive.
"We didn't make the tournament last year," Racette said. "From not making the tournament to going to the Final Four is a great year for us. Again, I told the guys that it's not our goal to get there. It's our goal to win it. You can take your defense to any gym, so we'll see what we can do down there."