BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. — Bridgeport outscored Greater Beckley Christian by eight points over the final 5:20 of the first half to lead 35-24 at halftime.
With the start of the second half bound to determine the direction of the remainder of the matchup, the Indians assumed complete control of the matchup, holding the Crusaders scoreless for the first 4 minutes of the third quarter and building a 21-point advantage in what amounted to a 69-49 victory as part of the Bridgeport Holiday Classic.
“Since I’ve been coaching, I’ve felt the most important part of a basketball game are the first 3 minutes of the second half,” BHS head coach Dave Marshall said. “You’re taking the momentum for potentially the rest and biggest part of the game. We preach that all the time. You can’t always tell it, but we really want to grind that and we think it sets the tone. We especially want to do it on the defensive end, so that was good to see.”
A balanced scoring attack with five double-figure scorers was led by Phoenix Sickles, who scored 17 points, but affected the game in a major way outside of his scoring, as evidenced by game-high totals of 11 rebounds and six assists, helping his team win the board battle, 32-23.
“I told him several times it’s so fun to watch him play when he slows down and sees the court,” Marshall said. “He plays so hard and he’s still learning to play hard, but not out of control. For almost any teenager, that’s a struggle. To watch him grow up before our eyes is great.“
Following a thrilling two-point victory over Lewis County only 16 hours earlier inside the BHS gym, the Crusaders (4-2) began the matchup with the Indians (5-1) in solid fashion, utilizing five points from Drew Fitzwater in the opening 2:30 to help play Bridgeport to a 13-all tie through one quarter.
BHS guard Anderson McDougal ran off five straight points in the second period, including a conventional three-point play 4:55 before halftime that left GBC facing a 25-17 halftime deficit.
Jack Spatafore added a three-point play of his own 21 seconds later, which combined with McDougal’s layup less than 1 minute later, made it a double-digit margin for the first time at 27-17.
The Crusaders countered with a triple from Averyk Woodson, but Sickles scored in the paint twice in the latter stages of the opening half to help the Tribe enter the intermission with the 11-point advantage.
BHS made 14-of-27 shots to the Crusaders’ 8-of-23 shooting through the first two quarters, but complacency wouldn’t become an issue for Marshall’s team after the break.
Instead, it wasn’t until a Kash Hendrix driving layup 4:10 into the second half that the Crusaders scored in the third quarter, and at that point, their deficit was 45-26.
During the 10-0 surge to open the second half, Sickles accounted for seven points, including a trey that marked the end of the run.
BHS led 56-33 through three quarters and ran off the first seven points of the fourth on a Landon Sanders triple and two buckets from Gavin Williams.
“We have a long way to go, but we’re getting there,” Marshall said. “That’s a well-coached team that’s really athletic, so this was a good one for us to get.”
Sanders added 12 points, Spatafore and Williams scored 11 apiece and McDougal contributed 10 for Bridgeport, which shot better than 50 percent (28 for 54).
Keegan Davidson scored nine straight GBC points in the fourth quarter to lead the team with 11 in defeat and Fitzwater added 10.