Basketball Advances to FAA Semifinals

Brunswick’s Sam Mazzullo broke a 50-50 tie against Hopkins in an FAA Quarterfinal with a fast-break lay-up with 1:05 left, as the Bruins held on for a 52-50 playoff win in Dann Gym on Tuesday. The fourth-seeded Bruins (6-15) advance to play top-seeded St. Luke’s on Thursday, February 20, while the Hilltoppers end their season at 7-14.

 

In the closely played game, the teams exchanged the lead 17 times, while the foes combined for 34 turnovers (Brunswick 18, Hopkins 16).

 

Brunswick’s largest margin over Hopkins came at 6:18 of the first half, as the Bruins held a 16-8 lead following a 9-0 run.

 

Hopkins countered with an 8-0 spurt to tie the game at 16-apiece at the 5:06 mark, converting two traditional three-point plays in the process.

 

The teams played close for the remainder of the half, as the Hilltoppers took a 27-26 lead into the halftime break.

 

Brunswick opened the second half with a 12-5 run, building a 38-32 advantage at 11:14. Chisom Okpara’s six points keyed the run, as Colin Mulshine shipped in four points.

 

Hopkins fought back and tied the game at 42-42 with a shot-clock-beating three-pointer at 7:40.

 

Five lead changes followed over the next five minutes of action, including a three-pointer from Brunswick’s Kevonne Wilder at 2:48, giving the hosts a 50-48 lead.

 

Hopkins knotted the game at 50-50 with a pair of made free throws at 1:53.

 

With 1:22 left, Brunswick turned the ball over, but on the ensuing Hilltopper possession, Mazzullo stole the ball near his own three-point line and raced in for the decisive, go-ahead basket with 1:05 remaining.

 

Trailing 52-50, Hopkins committed an offensive foul on its next possession, turning the ball over to the Bruins with 46.7 left in regulation. The Bruins worked the clock down to 26.4 before calling time out with 10 seconds left on the shot clock.

 

Following the time out, Brunswick missed a short jumper and Hopkins collected the rebound with 18 seconds to play.

 

The visitors, with two timeouts left, pushed the ball up court and worked to get an open shot. In the waning seconds, Brunswick’s Tristan Joseph knocked the ball loose and the Hilltoppers did not get a shot off, as the Bruins held on for the 52-50 playoff win.

 

Okpara led the Bruins with a game-high 21 points, as Joseph netted 13 and Mulshine chipped in nine.

 

Colin Gernhardt led the Hilltoppers with 19, while Michael Lau scored 12.