Last Friday night’s 72-57 Liberty District loss to Marshall was a bit of a downer for the Stone Bridge High School boys basketball team, which had been riding high following recent district wins over both Madison and Langley.
Stone Bridge, following the loss at Marshall, found itself with a 5-7 overall record and 3-2 in the district. The Bulldogs had high hopes of reaching the .500 mark going into the Marshall game. They were not able to get the victory, but the setback hardly tarnishes what has been an outstanding turnaround campaign thus far for Stone Bridge, which was winless in district play last year.
"The [district] wins have been a very positive thing, especially after last year," Stone Bridge coach Sonny Green said.
In earlier games last week, Stone Bridge had two huge district home wins — victories over Madison, 59-57, on Tuesday, and defending district champion Langley, 68-63, on Thursday.
And in the following day’s game at Marshall on Friday, Stone Bridge carried an impressive 34-25 lead into the half. But in the second half, Marshall controlled the play and came back to win.
"We just didn’t get the [defensive] stops," Green said of the Marshall game. "We didn’t play our best basketball. I don’t know if it was fatigue or not."
It certainly could have been a question of fatigue. After all, the Bulldogs were playing their third game of the week and second in two days.
"We were up at halftime [against Marshall], but we didn’t have the flow we had been getting," Green said. "It was probably more a mental letdown than anything."
<b>THE WINS</b> over Madison and Langley were vital for the confidence of a team that struggled so much in district play last year. The Bulldogs did get a district win in their season opener when they defeated Jefferson in a road game Dec. 2. The team’s next district game was a pre-Christmas loss at Woodson Dec. 19. But the wins over the Warhawks and Saxons wiped away the memory of the loss to Woodson.
"They were good wins for the program," Green said. "It gives us confidence. We knew coming in we could play with anybody."
In the win over Madison, Stone Bridge junior guard Richie Berry scored 14 points and senior forward Nate Ingersoll had 13 points. Sophomore Nik Brown and senior Jerel Wright both added nine points.
Stone Bridge also received contributions from numerous players in the win over Langley. Top scorers in the win over the Saxons were Ingersoll (14 points), sophomore Ryan Lowdermilk (11), senior post player Brian Slay (10), Berry (9), senior guard Michael Prince (9), Brown (8) and Wright (7).
In the loss to Marshall, Ingersoll (15 points), Berry (12) and Prince (10) were each in double figures, while Wright and Lowdermilk scored nine and seven points, respectively.
The season has been one of peaks and valleys thus far for Stone Bridge. The Bulldogs opened with three wins over their first four games before losing five straight. Last week’s win over Madison stopped the losing skid.
"Everyone was frustrated," Green said of the five-game winless stretch. "But we recommitted to everything. We got back to fundamental basketball. We focused on playing hard, smart and together."
The Bulldogs love to initiate the action with a running style of play.
"We like to push the tempo," Green said. "On defense we want to really pressure the ball. When we put pressure on the ball, it enables us to run the court [offensively on the break]."
Green said Stone Bridge has struggled at times when opponents have slowed the pace down. He said the Bulldogs must get better at running their half-court game on offense.
<b>OVER THE</b> first half of the season, contributions have come across the board for Stone Bridge. Ingersoll is averaging 10 points and leading the Bulldogs in rebounding with eight a game. He is also shooting more than 50 percent from three-point territory.
Lowdermilk, the team’s point guard, leads the team is assists. Meanwhile, the team’s top scorers are backcourt players Brown (17 points per game) and Berry (11).
Prince, who is averaging seven points per game, is the heart of the team.
"He’s our leader and captain on the court," Green said of Prince.
The team’s other captain is Wright (7 points, 7 rebounds per game), a post player who has been a strong contributor inside the paint. Another strong inside presence is Slay, who recently earned a football scholarship to North Carolina State.
"He’s giving us very solid minutes," Green said of Slay. "He plays tough inside defense."
One of the season’s highlights thus far was a decisive home win over Falls Church when Stone Bridge hit the 100-point mark.
Green said last year’s tough season is not on the Bulldogs’ radar anymore.
"We’re not focused on last year because this is not the same team as last year," Green said. "We’re focused on this year and being the best team we can be. Our best basketball is ahead of us."
This week, Stone Bridge was scheduled to play district games at McLean, Tuesday, and home against South Lakes, Friday. On Saturday night, the Bulldogs will play a non-region game at Loudoun Valley at 7:30 p.m.