Dominating performances by Cameron Brown and Jahziah Bell led David & Mary Thomson Titans to a blowout 85-35 victory over W.A. Porter Blue Eagles on Tuesday afternoon, in the TDSSAA Senior Tier 1 Boys Basketball East Region semi-final.
Brown dropped a game-high 36 points, and his transition baskets were instrumental in the victory.
He threw down emphatic dunks on the fast break, and on the defensive end made several big blocks.
February 18, 2020 (Kaj Larsen photo)
Bell also had a huge performance with 28 points and got his in a similar fashion to Brown’s. He was clinical on the fast break, throwing down several dunks, and used his length on the defensive end of the court to create several turnovers.
With the victory, the Titans moved on to the Tier 1 East Region final on Thursday, which will be played in their home gym. They will look to three-peat as East Region champions when they will take on Winston Churchill CI, at David & Mary Thomson Collegiate Institute.
Physicality and defence played a huge role in David & Mary Thomson’s blowout win, creating turnovers by utilising positioning and making double teams, then finishing in transition for easy buckets going the other way.
Asked about the impact of the defensive play on the offence, Thomson head coach Linda Manzo pointed to how effective defence helped in her team’s transition-game.
“A lot of it has to do with [scoring] easy baskets that are uncontested… It’s one of their innate skill sets,” said Manzo. “It makes it hard for teams to keep up, and that leads to our offence.”
February 18, 2020 (Kaj Larsen photo)
Both teams began the game pushing the pace with fast starts offensively. Titans hit two threes early, which helped them get in front by nine, but the Eagles’ defensive play was effective in response, and helped them close the lead to 18-13 with 2:44 to go in the first.
The five-point deficit was as close as Porter would get. The full-court double team was quickly implemented by Thomson, creating turnovers leading to transition buckets, and a 26-13 lead going into the second quarter.
The defensive stature of Thomson began to separate the two teams, not allowing W.A. Porter players to get into the paint, and only allowing them to settle for heavily-contested jumpers.
On the offensive side of the court, Thomson’s size allowed them to get to the rim with ease for uncontested layups and dunks. They had a 21-point lead with 2:28 to go in the first half.
Titans’ players continued each possession to drive to the hoop for easy buckets and built a 49-24 lead at the half.
Going into the fourth, the game was all but sealed. Brown threw down another highlight-reel dunk, symbolising the dominant performance of Thomson. Titans and Eagles exchanged buckets going down the stretch to the game’s conclusion: 85-35 for David & Mary Thomson.
David & Mary Thomson CI look to three-peat at home as East Region champions on Thursday, when they play Winston Churchill Bulldogs.