BINGHAMTON – Being a very young team this year, only return one starter from last year’s team, senior Michael Carson had to step up for Norwich to have success in a strong tournament field at the Stop DWI Holiday Classic this past weekend.
Carson stepped up to the plate and knocked it out of the park in the first round of the holiday classic, leading the Tornado with 15 points in their 56-49 win over Susquehanna Valley.
Turning up the defense in the second half held Sus Valley to one basket in the third quarter and and four points overall that quarter. “Because of our youth, we were very nervous in the first half,” said Norwich head coach Tom Collier. “We played much better in the second half once we settled in.”
Outscoring the Sabers 15-4 in the third helped Norwich take command of the game for the second half behind the leadership and nine points of Carson.
Also helping in the that quarter was Marcus Cashman on the defensive side for Norwich. Cashman locked down Lucas Davy in the third, holding him to zero after his eight points in the first half.
“Our overall defense was very good in the second half of the game and it’s what we need to continue to build on for us to be successful,” said Collier.
Offensively, Norwich was led by Carson’s 15 but has assistance by his younger teammate, Carson Maynard. Maynard came in off the bench to chip in 12 points.
Collier said of the young sophomore, “Maynard did a nice job for us this weekend with his steady play off the bench. He has grown a lot since are opening practice and we look for more improvement from him as well as the rest of our players as we progress through the season.”
Defense carried over into the final on Saturday against Class AA Binghamton, a “superior opponent that pressures you relentlessly,” described Collier.
Scrimmaging the Patriots before Thanksgiving, the Norwich community didn’t expect a close game. Many described that scrimmage as a blowout by a very large amount.
But much to the surprise of many, the Tornado closed out the first half tied with the heavy favorite at 17 a piece. Norwich’s defense that Collier takes great pride in held the Patriots to five points in the second quarter, setting the Purple up in a good position for a win.
“Our team this season is going to be out manned nightly throughout the season so we have really stressed defensive principals, plus working on all the little facets of the game that are often over looked by many.” said Collier.
Norwich carried their momentum from the second quarter through the intermission into the third when they were able to put 18 on the scoreboard over that ‘superior opponent’ and took a five point lead into the final quarter.
A quarter that was back and forth for both teams that really came down to the final seconds of the game.
Having the final look to tie Binghamton and force overtime was J.T. Vinal.
Vinal had an open shot from the left wing behind the arc. His shot looked like it was going to fall with good rotation on the ball. As Collier was seen with his arms in the air, as if the shot had fallen already.
