The Middies (7-2) took sole possession of first place in the GMC with the win, improving to 4-0 in conference play. The win was Middletown’s third in five trips on the road this season and was a slow grind over the Aviators, who dropped to 4-6 (1-4).
“This was one of those progression games where our physicality and pressure wore on them,” Middies coach Josh Andrews said. “They zoned us and clogged the paint with their size which got us a little frustrated in the half-court offense. But we found our poise, got some big buckets and our pressure eventually started forcing turnovers which we converted into easy buckets.”
The Middies scored 32 points off of 24 Sycamore turnovers. The pressure ‘D’ sparked a 7-0 run midway through the third that turned a 39-34 game into a 12-point Middie advantage.
Middletown then went on a 10-2 run to open the fourth quarter, punctuated by a 3-pointer by Zach Edwards, who finished with 13 points and four of Middletown’s 17 steals.
“Every night our goal is to force turnovers,” Edwards said. “We get easy buckets out of them and, especially on the road, easy buckets are a big key to getting the win.”
Edwards was one of three Middies to score in double figures — Geovonie McKnight led all players with 21 points, while Vincent Edwards scored 16 to go with eight rebounds and six assists.
“Middletown has a very nice team,” Sycamore coach David Moss said. “The score was a little deceptive because I thought we hung with them most the game.
“We were a little turnover prone tonight, but credit Middletown for forcing those turnovers. They knocked down the shots they needed to in the fourth quarter to pull away.”
Sycamore was led by Mason Morgan, who scored 10 points, while A.J. Williams scored nine and grabbed eight rebounds. The Middies got six boards from Mark Fayne and they enjoyed a 37-26 edge in total rebounds.
“We’ve got some areas we still have to improve on, but the guys are listening, buying into what we want them to do and I’m very proud of them,” Andrews said. “The trust and commitment level continues to rise. Anytime you go on the road in this league on a Friday night and come out on top, that’s a quality win.”
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