5 Biggest Takeaways: Leesville Road vs. Millbrook High School
There were quite a number of college coaches in attendance for last night’s Millbrook/Leesville Road game. Here’s a look at the 5 biggest takeaways from Millbrook’s 84-76 victory. The Pride’s game plan almost works out Leesville Road had a solid…
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Continue ReadingThere were quite a number of college coaches in attendance for last night’s Millbrook/Leesville Road game. Here’s a look at the 5 biggest takeaways from Millbrook’s 84-76 victory.
The Pride’s game plan almost works out
Leesville Road had a solid game plan coming out of the gates and they jumped out to a 5-0 lead and led for the first half of the game. They made sure to double team Will Felton every time he touched the ball and made sure to make him find other ways to be effective.
They weren’t limited by Millbrook’s pressure defense and despite keeping the ball out of Carter Whitt’s hands, the Pride still found ways to score, with role players making five 3-pointers and carrying a two-point lead into the second half.
Millbrook finds their magic in the second half
The Wildcats outscored Leesville Road 25-20 in the third quarter to take a 69-66 lead into the final quarter of play. It took some second half adjustments, but Millbrook found a way to take the lead for good when it mattered the most.
Eric van der Heijden put up a team-high 21 points, shooting 5-of-7 from 3-point range, making 3-pointers at key moments for Millbrook. He gave them their biggest lead of the night at 75-65 with a 3-pointer with 2:20 remaining in the game. He scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half.
Leesville Road’s role players stepped up
In the first half, 2021 guard Carter Whitt had just seven points. It was the play of those around him that carried the Pride in the early going. At halftime, the Pride led 36-34 over the Wildcats with 2020s Deon Daniels scoring 11 points and Alex Daniels with eight points. If they learn to put together two halves of basketball, things could have ended differently. Alex and Deon Daniels combined to make eight 3-pointers for Leesville Road in the game.
Will Felton finds a way to get his touches
Big man Will Felton posted his ninth double-double in 10 games with 19 points and 15 rebounds against Leesville Road along with four assists and three blocks. The Pride threw everything they could at Felton throughout the game and he adjusted nicely. He put up 11 of his 19 points in the second quarter and got to the free throw line quite a bit in the victory. As he learns to finish strong around the rim, he’ll be a prospect to watch.
Carter Whitt still does his thing
The Pride didn’t get the final result they wanted but Carter Whitt still managed to do his thing and control the pace. Whitt finished with 21 points in the end, scoring 14 points in the second half at the point guard position. He did well to trust his teammates to execute within the offense in the beginning then took over in the end.
Whitt didn’t let the crowd noise get to him and did well to score when he needed to down the stretch, although they lost in the end. With the likes of Notre Dame, NC State, Virginia Tech and others in attendance, he surely didn’t disappoint.