Bulldogs take down Cosmos

Switching defenses and making a batch of 3-point shots enabled Springfield to hang tough with Burr and Burton Thursday night at Dressel Gym, but it was the Bulldogs who cashed in at the free throw line down the stretch and went back to Manchester with a 53-48 win.

http://www.rutlandherald.com/article/20110218/SPORTS/702189845

Published February 18, 2011 in the Rutland Herald

Bulldogs take down Cosmos

By POODY WALSH
Correspondent

SPRINGFIELD — Switching defenses and making a batch of 3-point shots enabled Springfield to hang tough with Burr and Burton Thursday night at Dressel Gym, but it was the Bulldogs who cashed in at the free throw line down the stretch and went back to Manchester with a 53-48 win.

Both teams have been sputtering a bit as the season hits its critical point, but Division I Burr and Burton, after three straight losses, has now won for the third consecutive time in an effort to emerge from the middle of the pack and get a first-round home game in the playoffs.

The Bulldogs are now 10-6 in the 15-team division, and locked into a battle to get in the top eight. Mount Mansfield and Burlington were both 9-6 going into Thursday’s game and Colchester was 8-7.

“We had some tough losses against some tough teams, but we’re playing better now and this is the time of the year that you want to play better,” Bulldog coach Seth Rice said.

Springfield has now lost five of its last six, but the Cosmos have been in some slam-bang games including a five-overtime contest with Otter Valley, a two-point loss with Fair Haven and a defeat to MSJ in a game they had the lead late.

“It’s been a 16-game journey,” Springfield coach Pete Peck said. “We’ve had a tough stretch.” The Cosmos are 6-10 in Division II.

Burr and Burton went out to an 8-0 lead before the Cosmos got untracked and the gap between the two teams was never more than five points from the end of the first period to the final buzzer.

Springfield led 46-44 with 5:20 to go, but the Bulldogs got two big hoops underneath from Jake Oliver (16 points) for a 48-46 lead. But with 2:25 to go, Oliver went down after taking an errant elbow in the nose.

Burr and Burton took a timeout at that point, went into the delay game and Springfield let the clock run down to 42.1 before fouling Pat Hancock (13 points) while he was shooting a 3. He made all three free throws and it was 51-46.

Kirk Perham made two free throws for Springfield with 33.5 seconds to go, but the Cosmos had to continue fouling and on two consecutive trips to the foul line, the Bulldogs missed the front end of one-and-ones. However, Springfield couldn’t capitalize and when Adam Muminovic made two free throws for the Bulldogs with 14 seconds to go, the edge was 53-48 and that is where it finished.

“You know we got a lot of transition baskets once we figured out their defenses,” Rice said. “He changed defenses a lot.”

Peck said that changing defenses was part of the plan. “We really don’t want people to know what we’re going to play. We battled but their timely scoring was good in the last three minutes.”

Springfield was hampered early when Billy Wheeler picked up his second foul at 5:38 of the first period and had to sit until the second half. He eventually fouled out.

Springfield guard Ethan McAllister, who at times this season has really filled the hole from long distance, had four 3s and three of those came in a less than two-minute span in the second quarter. He finished with 14 points. Perham, who had a game-high 17 points, had two 3-pointers.

Both teams hit the road Monday as Springfield goes to Woodstock and Burr and Burton travels to Windsor.