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Bears blow lead, survive Crystal River Pirate attack

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By CHRIS BERNHARDT JR.

Published: December 23, 2007

BROOKSVILLE - Fittingly on a night they played a team called the Pirates, the Central Bears found themselves in uncharted waters.

They were ahead - big and early.

Central did just about everything right for the first six minutes of its non-district home contest Tuesday night against Crystal River High.

The Bears, just 2-22 last season, haven't had anything close to a winning campaign since 2003-04.

But behind 14 first-quarter points from the county's defending scoring champ, junior Darryn Frazier, Central found itself up 21-0 over the befuddled Pirates.

Problem is that lead didn't last. Crystal River finished that opening period on a 9-0 run, out-scored the Bears 32-11 the rest of the half and went into the intermission tied at 32.

Still Central managed to survive an exciting second half that featured five ties and six lead changes, clinching its third victory of the season, 65-62.

"The positives I'll definitely take from this is it's our third win, that's more wins than last year," second-year Central Head Coach Eric Hayes said. "The other positive, we won a close game.

"In three-point ballgames we've fallen on the short end of the stick. We kept fighting, kept fighting and got into a situation at the end where they had to foul.

"It is progress but at the same time we're still learning. This was a learning experience for us, as well. We're always used to coming from behind. It's another experience learning to get used to being on top. We're always the hunter. It's different when you become the hunted."

First-quarter mastery

The Bears (3-7) put together probably the best run they've ever had in their season and a half under Hayes during that stunning first quarter.

At one point Crystal River (3-6) Head Coach Tony Stukes pulled his entire starting line-up and his team didn't get on the scoreboard until reserve Cody Hibbard knocked down a three-pointer at the 2:16 mark.

Frazier, who ended up with 39 points, did most of the damage. Greg Rodriguez added five points in the game-opening spurt and Jessey Fulton another bucket.

"The first quarter we played with a lot of energy and I think they were surprised we were beating them so bad," Frazier said. "Then we relaxed and they came back."

"We executed well," Hayes said. "We ran our fast-break offense. We got some screens, got guys open. We took what they gave to us. We were taking advantage of our opportunities.

"Give credit to Coach Stukes. He's a veteran coach. He knew what strings to pull. They kept fighting back and played very good basketball."

Chris Hodgkins' steal and lay-up with 57 seconds remaining in the second quarter knotted the score at 30.

The Pirates took their first lead, 42-41, when Hibbard recorded a steal and threw ahead to Hodgkins for another basket.

From there neither team could gain any separation, but it was the young Bears who made more key plays down the stretch.

Barrett Sheffield stole the ball and went coast-to-coast for a lay-up with 2:35 left to play, putting Central in front, 59-58.

Shay Newcomer responded with a hoop to give the Pirates the one-point advantage, yet Sheffield came up big again nailing a three from the far corner, 62-60.

Hodgkins knocked down two free throws with 41.3 seconds showing, tying it at 62. Rodriguez went 1-of-2 from the charity stripe, providing the Bears with a 63-62 edge with 33 seconds left.

Frazier recorded a huge offensive rebound when Rodriguez missed his second free throw attempt. A jump ball allowed Central to retain possession, which eventually resulted in Frazier sinking two more from the line to seal the victory.

"It feels good. But we should have beat them by more," said Frazier, who added seven rebounds, four steals and two blocked shots. "It was too close but it's still good to get a win."

Hodgkins had 24 points and eight steals to pace Crystal River, though he did foul out late in the game. Hibbard chipped in 14 off the bench.

"The first six minutes we had 12 turnovers," Coach Stukes said. "The second quarter we had just four turnovers. We made up a huge deficit. We ended up with 26.

"Late in the game we had young, inexperienced kids. They fought real hard. It was a great effort; we just couldn't finish it out at the end."

With this win, Central had captured three out of its last five and came within a potential Frazier buzzer-beater of winning four of those games, losing to Nature Coast, 58-56.

"It's like I told the guys, I want them to be happy about the win," Hayes said. "It's an accomplishment. But at the same time, at the beginning of the season I expected way more than three wins.

"Still, we're moving forward. We're getting better. I want us to get to the point where we're more consistent. But it's a W and we'll take it."

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