Carson Graham Eagles Gain Flight Late, Soar Past Titans

Carson Graham Sr Boys vs Mulgrave

Saturday, Dec. 14

(photo credit: Blair Shier)

Time is ticking down. There's a few seconds remaining, the score is tied, there seems to be some ruckus on the court, both benches empty. What's going on? The buzzer goes. Oh wait, this is warm up, and it's the early game, and as the half-asleep parents stroll in with their jet fuel in hand from Tim Hortons, both Mulgrave and Carson are bringing the energy pre game to supplement until the caffeine hits.

Captains meet at center; first whistle sounds through the gym, and we are underway. Despite a size mismatch, Mulgrave wins the tip-off and after a couple rusty passes, they manage to get the first bucket of the game. A quick outlet pass and transition down the court and Carson answers back. Do these kids know what coffee is? Because they are not feeling any affects of an early start time, to the point where both coaches are already telling the teams to slow down the pace a mere 90 seconds into this contest.

Mulgrave is content on bringing the ball up under control, slowing the pace down but true to their name the Eagles are intent on attacking with pace and catching Mulgrave in transition. Carson and Mulgrave share a few missed buckets with a few made buckets and it seems both teams are not looking to slow the pace anymore. But, a couple slower movements of the ball up the court and it seems I spoke too soon.

Reminiscent of a certain someone, #13 in blue and gold takes a looping pass down in the far corner, quick pump fake to sell the defender and rolls baseline with a couple dribbles and a floater that bounces around the rim and drops to bring Mulgrave within 1, down 8-7.

The forwards are earning their stripes with this game being contested down low, fighting for rebounds; it has opened up some looks outside the arc and after a number of misses from both sides, the Eagles #10 smoothly drops in a 3 followed by another, and suddenly the Eagles are doubling up the score on Mulgrave at 14-7. A few quick up and backs from both teams result in no points, #13 on Carson gets a nifty pass as he cuts through the middle for an easy lay-up to extend the CG lead to 16-7 as the seconds tick down in a frantic, yet exciting, quarter.

Both coaches will be thrilled with the energy their respective teams are bringing but will most certainly also be telling their players to slow the game down, give the gift of possession a little more reverence, and look for better, more high percentage shots. A few buckets from either side are overshadowed by the misses and Mulgrave’s Coach Leduc calls a time out to tweak their game plan with the score 20-11 in favour of Carson Graham with 5:48 to go in the 2nd half.

A rare lane opens up and a beautiful drive through the opening for Mulgrave’s #2, a shift from left to right in the air and a glance off the backboard and the ball drops. A rare stroke of artistry in a game that has been fought in the trenches. It has clearly energized Mulgrave as #13 pulls up for a 3 on the near side and gets it to go, bringing Mulgrave within just 5 points at 23-18 with just over 3 minutes to go in the first half.  Another bucket from the top of the key and we are within 3 points and the momentum that was up for grabs is fully in Mulgrave’s hands; they pressure hard and force a shot clock violation, and are back in possession and looking to erase Carson’s lead. But, they can only muster a free throw from #2. Carson comes back down the floor for 2 points in close to go back up by 5; then, powering down the lane, #20 on Carson Graham receives a pass and takes his given two steps, throwing down a huge, rim bending dunk to end the quarter and steal back the momentum, restoring a 7 point lead at half-time for the Eagles, 29-22.

There was a rumour moving about that a certain Taylor Swift may be offering her services for the half-time entertainment, but apparently its not the pop star, in facts its a man from RBC who helps you plan for retirements, and luckily for everyone, he didn't show.

Science says it takes roughly 30-45 minutes for caffeine to enter the blood stream and if I was a betting man I'd say that was accurate as the chatter amongst the parents and spectators has picked up as the Carson Graham Eagles stroll out of their dressing room. Mulgrave, on the other hand, are huddled over a clipboard still discussing tactics that will hopefully allow them to grab back the lead that they haven't seen since the early minutes of the game.

Alright guys, hands in ... 1,2,3…and the second half is underway as Mulgrave inbound from the near sideline; however, the shot clock hasn't been turned on so lets holster this excitement until the refs and scorekeepers sort out the issue. Good thing they did, as Mulgrave is forced to put up a shot before time ticks down that doesn't drop, and Carson gets their first possession of the half, and the big man, #22, collects the litter of a missed shot and goes up to deposit it back in the bin for the Eagles. Mulgrave comes right back with a deep 3 from #13 who is most certainly feeling it, which hits pure nylon and brings Mulgrave back within 4, at 31-27. Carson Graham is not happy, and they call a timeout; you can hear the frustration about missed attempts and over committing to steals which is giving Mulgrave a door to get back into the game.

Carson returns to the big man down low and a fake sends his two markers jumping; gravity does its job, and he patiently waits for them to float on by as he rises to lay in another bucket. #15 of Carson Graham does his best copy-cat impression on transition and fakes a jump, sends a defender into orbit, and patiently pulls up to lay in another bucket, followed by another couple down low after some fails to convert by Mulgrave. Carson is quickly up by 14. A timely timeout to say the least: maybe Mulgrave’s coach should follow suit to cut off this momentum, but play goes on. Some good passing from the Eagles and #12 down low gets an easy lay in and Carson is running away with it, up 43-27.

Finally, Mulgrave gets an open look and it comes from the free throw line, as #13 drains both to give Mulgrave their first points in a while, but they still have a way to claw back. Another foul 100 feet from their own basket puts #13 at the line again, and once again, he puts away both shots to chip away further at Carsons lead, which is now down to 12. A beautiful shimmy shake from #15 on the Eagles to bully his defender into biting, not once, but twice, then pulls up from deep, but not deep enough for a 3, to put away one of the prettiest plays of the game; his bench knows it too, rising with some oohs and ahhs in approval.

#17 on Mulgrave says "anything you can do I can do better" and pulls off a no-look backwards circus lay-up that gets his bench to their feet.

Now back to defense: a steal at half court by #21 on the Eagles followed by a fast break, but he doesn't hear the footsteps of #1 on Mulgrave who is hot in pursuit, sneaking under his arm to poke the ball out of possession. This saves Carson from extending the lead from 15 to 17 points. Carson put their big men, #21 and #20, to work, pulling down rebounds left and right, using their size advantage with a tidy give-and-go down low. This results in a bucket and trip to the line for #20, who looks to put this game out of reach for Mulgrave, with Carson now up by 20 points, 56-36 with under 8 minutes remaining in the final frame.

Again, Carsons big men shine with a twinkle toes spin move by #21 down low to extend Carson’s lead and then immediately, the other way, a huge block by Carson’s #20. It seems the Eagles coach should have been leaning on these two earlier in the contest as they keep adding to the lead. Another bucket by #21, followed by #20, followed by #21 has these two trading baskets. A deep three from Carson’s #11, which is nulled by Mulgrave’s number 13, yet the remaining 4 minutes seem to now be moot as Carson is up 70-43: too grand a pasture for Mulgrave to cross.

A valiant effort from the visitors, but time ticks off the clock and this one is in the books, Carson is victorious  with a 74-46 scoreline.