By David Fierro
The winning streak continued in impressive fashion for Greenwich Country Day School’s boys basketball team Friday night, before a jam-packed house at its home gymnasium.
The Tigers were on the prowl once again, this time topping Hopkins School, to keep its perfect record intact in the FAA.
Using a big first-half run, Greenwich Country Day built a double-digit lead and never looked back, posting a spirited 64-45 Senior Night victory over Hopkins in an FAA matchup. The win upped the Tigers’ record to 7-0 in the FAA and 12-4 overall. At 7-0, GCDS is in first place in the FAA, while neighborhood rival Brunswick School is in second place with a 6-1 league mark.
The Tigers and Bruins will meet Wednesday at Brunswick School at 4:30 p.m. in a game that will decide the FAA regular season title. Also at stake in Wednesday’s matchup between Brunswick and Greenwich Country Day is the No. 1 seed in the FAA Tournament.
In Friday’s Senior Night/Hoops Night triumph against visiting Hopkins School, freshman 6-foot-7 forward Mekai Brown led a balanced GCDS scoring attack with 15 points. Junior 6-5 forward Taj Walters added 14 points, nine of which came in the second half, for the Tigers. Senior guard John Berbano registered 12 points with two 3-pointers for Greenwich Country Day in front of its enthusiastic home fans.
“It was Senior Night, so the guys were a little bit too excited and energetic at the start of the game and a little bit at the end too, but it was a good job by our team,” GCDS coach Patrick Scanlon said. “They are a tough team and well coached, so it was a solid win.”
The Tigers entered halftime against the Hilltoppers with a 36-19 lead, thanks to stellar perimeter shooting and strong inside play. The hosts imposed their will as the game progressed and consistently built their advantage.
“Toward the second half that’s when we started to play better, because of more spacing,” said Walters, who gave Hopkins matchup problems throughout. “We have a very talented team, so we can play 1-on-1, but as a team, when we play together, we can be unstoppable.”
Behind a pair of 3-pointers from guard Justin Wang, Hopkins took a 13-8 lead on GCDS early in the opening half. Then came the Tigers’ huge run that turned this game around. Berbano’s layup and 3-point shot tied the score at 13-13, beginning a resounding 25-1 Greenwich Country Day spurt.
Brown grabbed an offensive rebound and scored, putting the home team ahead for good at 15-13. Walters made two foul shots, then scored from the low post. At the 6:22 mark of the first half, Brown threw down a dunk in transition, making it 24-14 in favor of the Tigers.
Sophomore Rowan Introzzi swished a 3-pointer, Brown made another basket and senior Calder Truesdale scored on a fastbreak layup off a Berbano steal, capping a 25-1 run, giving the Tigers a 33-14 lead.
“Coach told us our intensity needed to go up,” Walters noted. “We ended up locking in and started getting some steals.”
Greenwich Country Day maintained its sizeable advantage in the second half, with Brown, Berbano and Walters continuing to convert shots.
Brown dunked again in the second half and made a shot off a well-executed step-back jumper, putting the home team on top, 48-21.
“Our whole thing was to be solid and we settled down and focused on certain things and it worked out,” said Scanlon, who mentioned Brown’s stellar play. “He (Brown) is super talented and he is starting to get a good feel for the game and how to find his spots – when to be aggressive, when to move the ball – he has big-time potential.”
Senior guard Will Hensel posted a game-high 21 points for the Hilltoppers, who have a record of 1-7 in the FAA. Truesdale had nine points, junior Griffyn Flood scored four points and Introzzi contributed five points for the victors.
On their Senior Night, the Tigers paid tribute to their seniors: Berbano, Jesse Ripka and Truesdale.
“It’s a big momentum high, we have a lot of seniors and we love them,” Introzzi said. “I know this is a big night for them I know they wanted it so bad. This boosts momentum and morale going into probably the biggest game of our season so far.”
“Our seniors are great leaders, they are hard workers and when guys are down in practice, they know how to keep everyone’s head up,” Introzzi continued.
Wednesday’s matchup between Brunswick and Greenwich Country Day is a rematch of last season’s FAA Tournament championship game won by the Bruins.
“We’re excited its been a great season as far as our record,” Scanlon said. “Now, we get to go play Brunswick, which we have had great games with over the years. It makes sense that we’re playing them for the regular season title.”
“They’re such a tough team, very well-coached and also a really good defensive team,” Scanlon said. “We’re going to have to be strong with the basketball. We know what we’re walking into, but we’ll be ready.”
Said Walters: “We are undefeated in the FAA, but we still have more to do. We still have an FAA championship to try to get to and still have our rivals to play on Wednesday night. Also, we are still trying to compete in the NEPSAC – we have a lot more work to do.”
