Inventors Push Past Canarsie
For the three quarters, the Canarsie Chiefs hung tough with the Thomas Edison Inventors.
However, in the fourth quarter, the Inventors made all the plays that Canarsie could not.
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"We got to play defense in the last quarter," said Inventors guard Isaiah Stokley. "This is our quarter, for us to win the game to come out strong in the second half and the fourth quarter is going to be ours. That was the only way we were going to win this game."
Thomas Edison took control of a closely contested game in the final quarter as they began the fourth with an 11-4 run. The Inventors forced the Chiefs into numerous three point attempts and capitalized off of turnovers early in the quarter as they advanced to the second round of the Public School Athletic League playoffs with a 53 to 44 home victory.
The Inventors would score the first points of the contest almost two minutes into the game and never relinquished the lead. Trailing 14 to 9 after one quarter of play the Chiefs (4-11) put together an 8-2 run midway through the second quarter to knot the game at 20. However, Stokley knocked down three of his team high 18 points with 1:22 left to play in the half to give the Inventors the separation they needed before halftime. Edison (18-3) took a one point lead to the half and it the game appeared to be up for grabs for either team.
In the third quarter both teams practically traded baskets as the Inventors were never able to increase their lead past six. Canarsie would cut the lead to a single point in the quarter after back to back scores by seniors Ojed McInnis (23 points) and Kyle Loadholt. However, the Inventors entered the final quarter of play with a three point lead. Edison's big men proved to be too much for the undersized Chiefs all game long and they came up big in the fourth quarter. Osamuede Egharevba (17 points) and Stephen Nwaukoni's (11 points) consecutive putbacks helped to spark Edison's 11-4 fourth quarter run.
"We wanted to get boards and play defense," said Egharevba. Not only did the Inventor big men put the ball in the basket but they also prevented Canarsie from scoring in the fourth quarter as they came up with two huge blocks in the final minutes. Edison knew entering the game that size could be a factor having scrimmaged against Canarsie earlier in the season, and they hope that they can use their size against their next playoff opponent Wings Academy. "They (Wings Academy) are not really big," said Inventors head coach John Ulmer Jr. "We are going to play 2-3 zone on them and not look to give them second opportunities or shots."
Edison had looked shaky in the past few weeks with a regular season home loss to Cardozo and a home loss in the Queens Borough playoffs to Forrest Hills. However, Ulmer believes his team has been motivated by those home losses and played with much passion in the first round against Canarsie. The Inventors will look to keep it going in the quarterfinal round at St. Johns next Tuesday against Wings Academy
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