Alex Brandon
Justin DuPree
CENTERVILLE, Ind. – Centerville Head Coach Seve Beach managed a smile on Saturday despite a 66-58 loss to Seton in the home opener for the Bulldogs.
“Extremely proud of this group,” Beach said. “There is no reason for us to hang our heads.
“The Bulldogs were able to build a small advantage against the Cardinals (2-0), who are ranked No. 17 in the Class A pre-season poll.
Centerville led 19-17 at the first stop and continued to have success in the second period until the shooting went cold.
When Justin DuPree scored with 5:02 left in the first half, the Bulldogs led 26-22. Seton finished the quarter with 14 straight points to go on top 36-26 at the intermission.
“We’ve got a very young group,” Beach said. “We’re dealing with some injuries and a lack of experience. Some of those caught up with us at the end of the first half and into the third quarter.”
In the third frame, Seton scored twice to lead 40-26 before Alex Brandon found the basket to finally end the run at the 5:54 mark. By the end of the period, the Cardinals had maintained their edge with a 49-36 lead.
Seton’s Desmond Bane was responsible for most of the damage during the stretch as he scored 12 of the 18 consecutive points as the Cardinals built their lead.
Centerville battled back in the final stanza and when Justyn North drilled a long-range 3-pointer with 21 seconds remaining Seton’s lead was down to 60-56. However from that point, the Cardinals were good from the free throw line to take the victory.
“They could have very well responded the other way and not bounced back,” Beach said of his squad. “We made some adjustments and started knocking down shots.”
“That’s the exciting thing with this group,” he continued. “They have totally bought in and they are working their tails off.”
DuPree led the Bulldogs with 18 points, while Brandon tossed in 13 as he grabbed a team-high six rebounds. North and Dante Torres added nine each for Centerville.
Bane finished with 42 points and a dozen rebounds for the Cardinals and Billie Webster III contributed 13 points.
Centerville (0-2) faces Tri-Eastern Conference opponent Northeastern at home on Friday, Dec. 4.
CENTERVILLE (0-2) – Myles Cunningham 2 0-0 4, Matt Stamper 1 0-0 3, Dante Torres 3 2-2 9, Alex Brandon 6 1-1 13, Justin DuPree 7 0-0 18, Justyn North 3 0-0 9, Devin Christian 1 0-0 2. Team – 23 3-3 58.
Centerville 19 26 36 58