CRESTLINE — Colonel Crawford started their season with a win at Crestline on Monday evening. The Eagles put a slow start behind them and prevailed, 50-23.
“It’s good to get a game under our belt,” Colonel Crawford head coach David Sheldon said after the win. “We have only had 10 days of practice. It is good to get a game under our belt when you have four new starters out there on the floor and a lot of new faces,”
Eagles go-to senior Braxton Baker led the way with 19 points after a scoreless first eight minutes.
There was a slow pace to the start of this one. Colonel Crawford built a 10-4 lead after a quarter thanks to some dominant paint action by Jacob Maddy. Maddy scored 10 points in the first quarter, which included a two-hand flush.
Crestline turned the ball over five times in the opening quarter. The Eagles carried a 20-8 lead into halftime over the Bulldogs. Braxton Baker was able to get going in the second quarter, adding seven points during those eight minutes.
“Thank God for our defense. We played good defense,” Sheldon said. “We didn’t shoot it well from outside tonight, let’s not kid ourselves.”
The second half looked more like Colonel Crawford basketball that everyone knows. The Eagles outscored the Bulldogs in the third quarter, 15-7, to take control of this one. Baker added eight points in the quarter, while Derek Horsely pitched in four.
“We did a better job in the second half of getting in the paint”, Sheldon explained. “First half we were just settling and running our offense way outside. We talked about it, ‘we got to get into the gaps in the zone’.”
In the final eight minutes, Crestline’s Isaiah Perry scored six of his 12 points to try to keep the Bulldogs in it. It was not enough as Horsley and Baker each added a couple of buckets late to keep control.
“This is about as happy as I can be after a loss,” Crestline head coach Tyler Sanders said. “Colonel is freaking good. (Jacob) Maddy is a handful, Derek (Horsely) can shoot the ball, (Braxton) Baker can shoot the ball.”
Maddy scored 13 points for the Eagles, while Horsley pitched in eight.
Carter Jones and Jake Bruce each added in four points for Crestline to go along with Perry’s 13.
Next up for Colonel Crawford is a matchup with Kenton at home. Crestline will take on St. Peter’s on the road on Friday.
