The Chatham boys' basketball team squeaked out a win over New Providence 43-42 today at home in the Chatham Cougar Classic Holiday Tournament.
The Cougars trailed after both of the first two quarters, but retook the lead for the first time since the first minutes of the game after senior Casey Gill hit a putback shot at the buzzer in the third quarter.
"It was definitely a big momentum shift," Gill said. "It really got the crowd into it, so that really helped our cause in the fourth quarter."
Chatham struggled from the field early on, but built off of Gill's putback to find a groove toward the end of the game.
"We came out real slow, but we came out better in the second half," Head Coach Todd Ervin said. "We just made some shots. We missed everything in the first half."
One of those key shots was a three-pointer from Jonathan Berntsen late in the game that put the Cougars back on top after going back and forth with New Providence.
"My shot was feeling good all night," Berntsen said. "I knew I was going to hit one and it happened to be big late in the game."
The Cougars "sixth man"—their home crowd—packed the stands and stayed on their feet the entire game. Gill said the home crowd's support is crucial to the players.
"When opposing players come in here, they get heckled by our fans," he said. "It definitely plays a big role in mind games like layups. They're not so easy. If you have the home crowd on your side, it definitely helps us out in games."
The Cougars lost a key part of their offense when junior guard Brian Ballard suffered an injury in the second half, but Gill said Chatham's depth helped them pull out the win.
"In practice, everyone plays," he said. "That's a big part with our bench. We go pretty deep. If we lose a good player like Ballard, we can bounce back."
Chatham's bench outscored New Providence's bench 15-2.
Senior Chris Conroy led the Cougars in points and rebounds with 13 and eight, respectively. He matched a game-high point total with New Providence's Jack Cole. Cole picked up a double-double as he grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds.
The Cougars improved to 4-1 with the win and they take on Hanover Park High School in their conference opener Tuesday on the road.
