Avengers Move Forward To D-3 State Championship

The East Greenwich Avengers are moving on to the state championship game after beating the Juanita Sanchez Cavaliers Friday night 53 to 49.

The semifinal matchup between the Avengers and Cavs was back and forth throughout the night at the Community College of Rhode Island with constant lead changes. But in the end East Greenwich got the job done as they upset the #2 seed, Juanita Sanchez Complex, winning by four points.

Both teams were slow to get in their groove from the beginning of the game. But after a few minutes EG went on a 10-0 run to take a twelve point lead. Juanita Sanchez then called a pivotal timeout to halt the Avenger momentum. For the rest of the half the Cavaliers were working hard to slowly gain a lead.

Juanita Sanchez was showcasing strong defensive pressure on the Avenger offense to force turnovers in order to get back into the game. By the end of the half, Juanita Sanchez successfully held the lead and gained the momentum. The score was 27-25.

From the start of the second half everyone in the gym could immediately tell that this semifinal battle was going to go down to the wire. Going into the game the Avengers knew they had to play their best basketball in order to upset the talented Cavalier squad, but they needed to especially showcase their defensive skills. In the second half the Avengers certainly did play great basketball, both fundamentally and mentally. 

"We stuck together under a lot of pressure and kept our heads up through rough patches in the game," said starting guard Evan Walsh after the hard fought victory.

One of the biggest factors that worked towards the Avengers winning the close game was their team chemistry. This year's EG basketball team has been successful because they are talented but they have been very successful throughout the year because their team chemistry is phenomenal. Last night's performance proved that the Avengers are a close-knit group because whenever they were losing they kept their composure and rallied back into the game together. 

"We kept our heads in the second half and finished off the game well with good team defense," freshman center Brandon Eckles said after the game. Eckles played great defense and showcased his great offensive post moves in the biggest game of his promising career thus far. 

Towards the end of the game the Avengers finally gained a lead over the Cavaliers and they kept the close lead due to smart coaching and execution. Juanita Sanchez tried their best to regain the lead by performing a backcourt press, but EG knew how to break the press which helped them keep the lead. After the press failed for them the Cavaliers had to foul the Avenger in hopes of missed free throws. 

Dan Caron pointed out, "we knocked down our free throws down the stretch." Caron led the Avengers in scoring with 17 points but a majority of his points were thanks to his clutch free throws toward the end of the game. After Caron sunk a pair of free throws with about a minute left Juanita Sanchez responded back with a three pointer to come within one point. 

Sam Payette then successfully broke the press once again and was fouled by a Cavalier defender out of desperation. Payette swished both free throws to seal the victory for the Avengers. 

The East Greenwich Avengers will face off against the Prout Crusaders Sunday night at 8:30 PM at CCRI. Prout upset the number one seed in the division, Johnston in order to make the championship game. In the regular season, EG and Prout split the season series both winning and losing one of the matchups. Since the #1 and #2 seeds from division three get an automatic bid to the statewide tournament the Avengers must win the state championship game Sunday night against the #4 seed Prout.

Come out and support the East Greenwich Avengers in their state championship final game Sunday night at 8:30 at CCRI!

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