Second half surge propels Warriors past Kaplan

The Kaplan Pirates were clicking on all cylinders in the first half of their matchup with Northside Christian on Tuesday.
Orlando Roy and Reese Hardee combined for 21 points and the Pirates (2-4) went 11-for-13 from the free throw line in the first two quarters to help the visitors take a 38-30 lead.
From there, it was all Northside Christian, however.
The Warriors went on a 17-4 run in the third quarter and then exploded for 22 points in the fourth quarter to earn a 69-52 victory at Seth Trahan Memorial Gym.
“The first half was a little sloppy for us, but we really turned it around in the second half,” said NCS coach Glenn Daigle. “We just couldn’t really get in a rhythm early, but once we started moving people around, I think I rotated three or four players in and out, we finally found their groove.”
The victory sent the Warriors to 7-9 overall and it also snapped a six-game slide.
“This was a big one for us,” said Daigle. “We’ve been playing some bigger schools, tougher competition, and we played with those guys and were in those games, but we really needed a win tonight for morale.”
Although the first half wasn’t horrible for the Warriors offensively, they struggled on the defensive side where Kaplan scored the bulk of their points in the paint.
The Warriors also got into early foul trouble and gave up 11 points at the charity stripe.
All that changed, however, in the second half.
“We made some adjustments at halftime and the kids really came out and played in the second half,” said Daigle.
Garrett Kidder gave the Warriors a huge spark by scoring eight points in the third quarter and Jake Morgan completed a three-point play with a highlight reel layup and a free throw.
Northside’s defense also played a key role in the momentum shift. The Warriors forced six turnovers in the third period and were able to keep the Pirates out of the lane for the most part.
“The boys did a better job of playing contained defense in the second half,” said Daigle. “In the first half, we were just everywhere and then when they went just total contain, we were able to force some turnovers and get a lot of rebounds.”
Kaplan’s Raine Mire had all four of the Pirates’ points in the frame on a jumper early in the quarter and a floater in the lane just before the buzzer.
Jagger Thibodeaux scored on a pair of driving layups to start the fourth quarter and the Warriors‘ lead grew to nine (51-42) in the first 40 seconds of the frame.
Caleb Hanks added nine of his game-high 17 points down the stretch and Christian Myers had four points to help the Warriors pull away.
Hanks, the Warriors’ leading scorer, was limited to just four points in the first half.
“In the first half, Caleb just wasn’t seeing the court well,” said Daigle of Hanks, who also had 16 rebounds. “In the second half, he started seeing it way better and he started to take over. He made some good passes and when the shots were there, he knocked them down.”
Andrew Woods and Kidder followed Hanks with 12 points each.
Woods helped the Warriors remain in striking distance early in the game by coming off the bench and hitting three big 3-pointers in the first half.
“Andrew has been getting more and more minutes throughout the season and he’s probably our leading 3-point shooter, percent wise,” said Daigle. “He had a great game tonight and really helped keep us in it in the first half.”
Joseph Woods also scored in double figures with 10 points, Thibodeaux and Morgan each added six and Myers finished with four. Carson Tweedel rounded out the Warriors’ offense with two points.
Kaplan was led by Hardee and Roy with 14 and 12 points, respectively. Mire and Derion Turner also scored in double figures for the Pirates with 10 points apiece.
The Warriors now turn their attention to a huge Friday matchup when they will entertain the Family Christian Flames, who currently sit at No. 1 in the Division V power ratings.
The Warriors are five spots below the Flames at No. 6.
“This is a huge game for us,” said Daigle of Friday’s 5:30 p.m. contest. “Family Christian is No. 1 in our division, so it’s a good measuring stick for us to kind of see where we are at and where we need to get to.”