By: Rob Massey 12/08/09
GUELPH — For the Centennial Spartans, basketball is a sprint.
The Spartans ran to their fifth victory in as many games, holding on to edge the Lourdes Crusaders 74-69 in District 10 senior boys basketball action Tuesday.
When the Spartans get the basketball, the first goal is to get upcourt as fast as possible. The fast break is their best friend.
“We love to push the ball,” Centennial co-captain Rob House said. “That’s our main thing. If they score or don’t, just push the ball down the court as fast possible.”
While the Spartans are unbeaten in league play, they have been defeated this season.
“We’re undefeated in town, but we’ve lost outside of here in a couple of tournaments,” coach Rob Conroy said. “We’re playing well.
“You go in tournaments to get better in league play. Our sights are set on District 10 and we’ll take it as it comes.”
Tuesday, the defending champion Spartans did most of their damage in the second and third quarters, outscoring the Crusaders by 20 points.
Mike Finoro helped Lourdes rally in the fourth quarter as the visitors closed the margin from 19 points to five. Finoro had 19 of his 27 points in the fourth, including four three-pointers.
House led Centennial with 21 points while Adrian Varilla had 14 and Jay Francis 11.
For Lourdes, Sharieff Peru had 28 points while Kim Cruz had five.
The Crusaders have no problem stopping a rush up the court to take a three-pointer. They hit 11 of them against Centennial, four more than the Spartans.
The District 10 loop is shaping up to be a close one this season. The teams at the bottom of the standings can’t be taken lightly as most games have been close ones.
“It is a pretty tight league,” House said. “Every game we’ve played in so far have been within 10 points, except for a couple. It’s looking pretty tight this year, which is good.”
“The league is open to anybody,” Conroy said. “The league has parity and it’s going to be the team that stays the healthiest and the team that improves the most over the next couple of months.”
The tough regular-season games should pay dividends for whichever teams advance out of the district.
“It makes everyone better, every team better, by having the close games,” House said. You’re always battling back and forth. It definitely does make a difference.”
GUELPH — For the Centennial Spartans, basketball is a sprint.
The Spartans ran to their fifth victory in as many games, holding on to edge the Lourdes Crusaders 74-69 in District 10 senior boys basketball action Tuesday.
When the Spartans get the basketball, the first goal is to get upcourt as fast as possible. The fast break is their best friend.
“We love to push the ball,” Centennial co-captain Rob House said. “That’s our main thing. If they score or don’t, just push the ball down the court as fast possible.”
While the Spartans are unbeaten in league play, they have been defeated this season.
“We’re undefeated in town, but we’ve lost outside of here in a couple of tournaments,” coach Rob Conroy said. “We’re playing well.
“You go in tournaments to get better in league play. Our sights are set on District 10 and we’ll take it as it comes.”
Tuesday, the defending champion Spartans did most of their damage in the second and third quarters, outscoring the Crusaders by 20 points.
Mike Finoro helped Lourdes rally in the fourth quarter as the visitors closed the margin from 19 points to five. Finoro had 19 of his 27 points in the fourth, including four three-pointers.
House led Centennial with 21 points while Adrian Varilla had 14 and Jay Francis 11.
For Lourdes, Sharieff Peru had 28 points while Kim Cruz had five.
The Crusaders have no problem stopping a rush up the court to take a three-pointer. They hit 11 of them against Centennial, four more than the Spartans.
The District 10 loop is shaping up to be a close one this season. The teams at the bottom of the standings can’t be taken lightly as most games have been close ones.
“It is a pretty tight league,” House said. “Every game we’ve played in so far have been within 10 points, except for a couple. It’s looking pretty tight this year, which is good.”
“The league is open to anybody,” Conroy said. “The league has parity and it’s going to be the team that stays the healthiest and the team that improves the most over the next couple of months.”
The tough regular-season games should pay dividends for whichever teams advance out of the district.
“It makes everyone better, every team better, by having the close games,” House said. You’re always battling back and forth. It definitely does make a difference.”
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