Devils Fall to Generals in Gene Wein Final
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- Playing without senior forward Slayter Aubin, who went down with an ankle injury the night before in a win against Wahconah, the Drury boys' basketball team couldn't hit enough shots against Pittsfield to avoid losing 55-36 in the championship game of the Gene Wein Holiday Tournament on Friday night."Without Slayter this early in the season, we just don't have that much depth," Blue Devils head coach Jack Racette said. "We've played four games in seven days, and we're just not ready. We don't know offenses yet. We need some time to get organized."
The Generals, who moved to a perfect 4-0 with the win, took control of the contest in the fourth quarter, outscoring the hosts 19-8 and holding Drury (2-2) to just field goals in the frame. Pittsfield took a 22-14 lead into halftime, but the two teams played an even third quarter to put the Blue Devils down by eight points heading into the fourth. Racette's club never made a run, however, as the Generals fast-paced tempo eventually seemed to wear Drury down. The Pittsfield defense was a problem all night for the Devils, which held the hosts under 10 points in every quarter except the third.
"We looked like we were worn down," Racette said. "We were missing Slayter and [Nolan] Bird was sick, so we had some subs in. In the fourth quarter, they switched to a zone from a man-to-man, and they ended up being more athletic than us."
Richard Bynum scored 17 points on his way to earning tournament MVP honors for Pittsfield, while teammate Brendan Hamel also put in 17 points to earn a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Drury (2-2) was led by senior guard Joel Giorgi, who came through with a team-high 15 points and 10 rebounds. Bird chipped in with seven points, four rebounds and two assists.
The Blue Devils' busy start to the season concludes on Wednesday, with a home game against Mohawk at 7:30 p.m.