Annandale senior D’Angelo Boyce, and his 17 points per game, was nowhere to be found in the first half of the Northern Region first round game against Westfield.
But when the third quarter began, the Atoms jumped out on defense forcing a few turnovers, and Boyce took advantage, scoring seven points quickly in those opening minutes to help Annandale open up an 11-3 run that put them on top 41-36.
“Annandale played very well in the third quarter and we didn’t handle the pressure very well,” Westfield coach Doug Ewell said.
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“We went full-court, man-to-man and my coaches told me to keep my head up, get back on defense and don’t worry too much about offense,” Boyce said. “And he said my defense turns into my offense, so that’s what I did in the third quarter.”
Annandale went on to defeat Westfield 73-71 in a heartbreaking loss for the Bulldogs. At the end of the third they trailed 54-43, and it looked like the Atoms were going to inevitably run away with the game.
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But the Bulldogs scrapped back into the game. With Annandale up 66-57 with three minutes left, Westfield found a surge from juniors Zach Elcano and Quinten Basil and sophomore Chauncey Beckett. The Bulldogs cut the score to 68-67 with 1:30 remaining. After Annandale went up 72-69 with 22.6 seconds remaining, Westfield cut the lead back to one point with 3.5 seconds remaining.
Elcano delivered largely in that exciting fourth quarter, scoring 12 points, doing everything to keep his Bulldogs from falling too far behind.
“He played very hard, just like the rest of our team,” Ewell said. “Zach’s a very good player and he showed that tonight.”
Annandale senior Melvin Robinson was fouled on the inbounds play and had the pressure of making at least on free throw on his shoulders after missing his only two attempts. He made the first, but missed the second.
Westfield grabbed the rebound, but couldn’t sink a miracle full-court heave and saw their season end in that moment.
Elcano and Basil led the Bulldogs with 20 points each. Junior Mark Gibson added 10, senior David Aurora scored nine and Beckett added seven.
Annandale senior and Patriot District Player of the Year Karl Ziegler carried the load for the Atoms, scoring 27 points, including 18 in the first half. Boyce finished with 14, Robinson added 11 and juniors Tyler Schwartz and Monte McCarthy added eight and six points.
