The Bromfield boys basketball team improved to seven wins and five losses Monday, with a 51-29 win over the South Lancaster Academy Crusaders. That was Bromfield’s seventh straight victory, after handily defeating Tahanto Regional High School last Wednesday, 79-53.
The Crusaders jumped out to a quick 15-3 lead, behind eight points from point guard Ed Cunha. They played a quick zone defense that led to seven first-quarter turnovers from Bromfield. Bromfield swung back in the final minute of the quarter, with six quick points to bring themselves within five, ending the quarter down by a score of 15-10.
Bromfield’s man-to-man defense began to work when they extended their range beyond the three-point line, eliminating the long shot from the free-shooting SLA team. Bromfield junior center Sam Shepherd provided a huge boost off the bench, scoring four points and grabbing five rebounds in his two minutes of play to end the first half. Bromfield point guard Brian McCullough hit the posting Shepherd with lob passes on two consecutive plays, and Shepherd used his long arms to grab the floating passes. Bromfield went into halftime with a 20-18 lead.
Senior forwards Sean Thurston and Nick Ashe both stepped up in Bromfield’s high-energy third quarter. Ashe had four steals in five SLA possessions, each of which led to fast breaks for McCullough and Thurston. Then, Thurston had a steal of his own, intercepting a pass to the post before sprinting up court for an open lay-in. Thurston had eight points on the evening, with five rebounds and four assists.
Bromfield scored 16 points in the quarter before SLA got their first basket, which completed an astonishing 35 to three run that spanned 20 minutes. Bromfield’s senior captain Luke Broganer scored eight straight points in the final quarter, which sealed the victory for Bromfield. Broganer finished with 12 points and four rebounds. His fellow captain Jeff Yates tore apart the shorter Crusader line-up, grabbing nine rebounds to go with six points.
Ashe had five points, eight rebounds, and five steals in the victory; and McCullough had eight points, five rebounds, and three steals.
Bromfield point guard Sebastien Lipman paced the Bromfield bench in the final four minutes, finishing with four rebounds, an assist and two steals.
Bromfield is first in Mid-Wach D, a game ahead of the Ayer Panthers.
