Brophy 62
Cienega 34

By Erik T. Masingill ’12
THE ROUNDUP

Although the No. 24-seeded Cienega Bobcats scored first, the No. 9-seeded Broncos scored seven unanswered points to gain and hold the lead throughout the game, which ended as a 62-34 Brophy victory in the first round of the Div. I state playoffs Thursday Feb. 16 at Robson Gymnasium.

“We played defense, we got some steals early, we got some easy buckets, James (Harper ’12) hit some shots,” said head coach Mr. Tony Fuller. “We got a lead, came out in the third quarter and improved on the lead, and I think that was the difference.”

Fred Gammage ’12 began the scoring for the Broncos with the first five points. Four more Broncos scored in the first as Brophy led 15-6 at the end of the quarter.

Brophy began the second quarter with three consecutive three-point shots from Harper and Austin Hammond ’13 that forced the Bobcats to take a timeout.

Cienega outscored the Broncos 11-10 the rest of the quarter, but at halftime Brophy held a 34-17 lead.

In the second half the Broncos outscored the Bobcats 28-17 (22-7 in the third and 6-10 in the fourth) to maintain the lead and seal the win.

Harper led the Broncos with 18 points. Tim Kempton ’13 scored 13 points. Gammage placed third in scoring with 12 points.

The Broncos shot 19/25 on free throw attempts.

Mr. Fuller said they need to improve on not turning the ball over as much in their next game.

“We’ve got to cut down on turnovers and make our free throws. If we do that, I think we’ll be in good shape,” he said.

With the first round over, the Broncos (22-7 overall) will play their second round game on the road against No. 8-seeded Westview Saturday, Feb. 18. Westview (23-6 overall) had a first-round bye along with the other top seven seeded teams in the tournament.

“Big strong athletes, we got our work cut out for us,” Mr. Fuller said of Westview’s team. “Every team is good this time of year. We’re just fortunate and happy that we’re still playing.”