Holy Cross Blows Lead Against Mitty
SPRINGFIELD, MASS. -- Archbishop Mitty (CA) came into Sunday afternoon's game against Holy Cross as a wounded unit, having lost UCLA-bound forward Drew Gordon to a broken foot two days prior to the game along with fellow starter Chris Weber for the San Jose school.
However, the California school was able to take advantage of several Holy Cross miscues down the stretch to pull off a 62-61 victory at the Hoophall Classic on the campus of Springfield College.
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Holy Cross looking to push ball up the floor, and turn the tempo up. Mitty countered by bringing in athletic guard Collin Chiverton, who will head to St. Mary's next season, off the bench. Even though Mitty's leader in the 6'9" Gordon was out for the game, Mitty sported a very capable lineup, but was defended well by senior guard Kayvon Roberts and forward Ernest Freeman.
Both teams went back and forth throughout the opening quarter, and with seven seconds remaining before the buzzer sounded to end the first quarter Virginia-bound Sylven Landesberg buried a three pointer to give Holy Cross a 16-14 lead heading into the second session.
Mitty was able to take advantage of several Holy Cross turnovers in the beginning of the second quarter, as coach Paul Gilvary's squad often made reckless decisions with the ball. Mitty, with the 6'5" Chiverton in the game was able to hit the offensive boards hard to give themselves several second chance opportunities. However, Landesberg, who finished with 15 points in the opening half, became more aggressive by taking the ball to the basket and using his improved strength to keep the CHSAA team in the game.
A Chiverton three with 3:32 left in the second session gave the California-school a 27-24 advantage over Cross. Mitty soon began turning up the pace on their offense as coach Brian Eagleston was able to rotate in players that could match Cross' athleticism. Holy Cross went into the locker-room up 35-32 at halftime, led by Landesberg's 15 points. Kayvon Roberts complimented Landesberg with 8 points in the first half. Collin Chiverton, who scored 12 points in the half, while Bucknell-bound forward Enoch Andoh chipped in 11 points for the private school, led Mitty.
Mitty took a hit early in the third quarter when Chiverton picked up his third foul less than a minute into the second half. However, the Mitty coach Eagleston decided to roll the dice and leave Chiverton in despite his foul trouble. The gamble didn't work in Mitty's favor, as Chiverton picked up an ill-advised foul when he hit Landesberg's hand on a three-point attempt with 4:43 left in the third quarter.
With Chiverton out of the game, Holy Cross was able to open the lead to six when senior guard Blaise Ffrench finished a lay-up with just under four minutes remaining in the third quarter. Mitty tried to counter Cross' multi-guard attack by throwing the ball inside to Andoh while Chiverton was out of the game. Mitty was able to keep the game well within reach, as they headed into the fourth quarter down by a score of 47-44.
Mitty continued to crash the offensive glass hard and throw the ball inside to the 6'8" Andoh as the fourth quarter began. Collin Chiverton was put back into the game with four fouls at the 4:40 mark of the final quarter for Mitty. The Queens school was able to sustain their lead for the latter minutes, as they played disciplined offensively.
However, a series of miscues by Holy Cross soon followed which ultimately cost them the game. Mitty was able to cut the lead to 59-57 with just over 1:30 to play in the final quarter thanks to a lay-up by senior forward John Adams. Kayvon Roberts answered with a put-back lay-up to put Holy Cross back up by four. Chiverton answered right back with a three with 1:00 to play to cut Cross' lead to 61-60. Andoh then came back after a defensive stop to give Mitty a 62-61 lead with 18 seconds left in the game. A last second out of bounds attempt by Holy Cross was jumped on by Mitty, as they were able to secure the 62-61 win over the Queens school.
Landesberg, who will be playing in the ACC next season, led Holy Cross with 26 points and 5 rebounds in a losing effort, while the Mitty big-man Enoch Andoh won the game MVP award after finishing with 21 points and 8 rebounds.
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