Being at a basketball game is electrifying. Of all the American pastimes, we choose sports because of its fast paced exhilarating atmosphere, as we watch athletes put on a show. There are few things more fast paced than basketball. After a strong start to the season, the Enloe basketball team continues its pursuit of a state championship playoff berth, with a rough breakneck, down and dirty playstyle. This past week, the eagles faced off against the broughton capitals. Moment by moment, here’s how it went. 

First Half

Eagles win the tip. Ball in the hands of senior guard Fisayo Adebimpe, they take it up court. A quick pass leads to an open 3 from senior Ethan Montague, which is in and out, but it doesn’t matter. It sets the tone- the Broughton Capitals are immediately put on the defensive, scrambling to get back into their places and stop the ball. Rebound goes back to the Eagles and is moved around, until it hits junior forward Gift Moses. At 6’5, Moses is the team’s primary interior threat, primarily scoring inside the paint. He gets it behind the arc, with the defender giving him space, anticipating the threat of him taking it inside. Mistake. Gift fires an open 3, and it’s all net. Enloe up 3. Back on defense, the Eagles set up. Running man defense to start the game, the harassment begins before the Capitals cross half court. Forcing pass after pass, every time an opposing player gets a ball he’s greeted with a hand in his face. The Eagles play scrappy and quick- Broughton players barely get dribbles off before getting covered up. After nearly 20 seconds, they force a tough shot and miss. A nimble guard gets the put back rebound but the rhythm has been set- Broughton scoring those two points took them a sizable effort. The first quarter never breaks this tempo; on offense the Eagles look relaxed. Good open shots can be found, after a putback lay by junior forward Owen Peterson and 3 by Adebimpe, Enloe is rolling. The Capitals shoot well, but can barely get an uncontested shot off. A couple of tough 3s keep Broughton in it, putting them down 16-13 at the end of the first quarter. 

As soon as the second quarter starts, the Caps come out firing. Three tough layups in a row and a three put them up six, and Enloe looks sloppy on offense. The fast pace that often gives the Eagles the competitive edge are leading to bad turnovers, strained shots, and careless passing. The Caps are attacking with a fierceness, going right at Moses and Peterson in the paint and creating easy shots. The Eagles need a counterattack to stay in it, and with the pace changing Coach Chapman calls a time out. Three minutes to go in the half and Enloe comes out from the huddle with a new attitude. The pace is slower now – though this gives up their speed advantage, passing looks fluid again. The scoring comes in again, still coming from the big men. Moses hits back to back post up hook shots, then Peterson continues the run with back to back transition 3s to put the Eagles down by only two. And it’s all uphill from there – instant offense from the team’s primary scorer, Ethan Montague, leaves the Capitals at a standstill. A last second 3 from Senior Darian Chamblee puts the Eagles up 6 at the half, with all the momentum on their side. 

Second Half

The Eagles can win this game, and they know it. With blood in the water, they launch back into an instant attack. Ever the playmaker, Chamblee fires a pass into the paint to Moses three seconds into the possession. Easy layup. Back on defense, the Capitals are shook. They try the same play, but the Eagles aren’t going for it. Pass intercepted, the ball goes back the other way, moving up the court methodically. The game is in the hands of the Eagles now, and they’re dominating the pace. Clearing a path, Montague bodies his way into the paint for a tough layup. The lead is double digits now, and Broughton plays with the wind taken from their sails. But they certainly aren’t dead in the water; what the Eagles bring in scrappiness, the Capitals match in fundamentals. Despite the constant pestering from the defense, they never truly lose composure. Simple passes inside and quick kickouts lead into open 3s, slowly bring them back. As the Eagles move to combat the shooting attack, Broughton switches to quick cuts, giving them open layups two possessions in a row. The relentlessness of Enloe’s offense never lets up, but they never truly put the game away. Following a big block by senior Jason Okoro, shifting the momentum back on their side, the Eagles enter the fourth up seven.

 The game thus far has been breakneck speed. Steals, fast breaks, and quick passes dominate the flow of play. But a combination of exhaustion and increased need for focus brings the fourth down to a methodical pace. After a quick floater from Montague, the Eagles go up nine, and the game is in their hands. A solid two minutes goes by with no score – both teams take open looks in the paint and come up short. The game is still in the Eagles hands, this kind of gridlock is beneficial. With six minutes to play, their number one priority is to own the pace. Giving up points is no big deal, as long as the Caps have to waste time to get them. And this strategy works. The defense turns from aggressive pestering, to a more spread out zone approach. This forces the offense to slowly take it inside, passing back and forth for half a minute before they even get a shot up. The clock ticks down, and the Capitals can’t get anything going. They have to resort to fouls, which gives the Eagles free throws, all of which they knock down, and the game is virtually over. In the final minute, the Eagles dribble out the clock, and take the win 58-64. Thanks to a dominant scoring performance by Ethan Montague, and a solid interior effort from Gift Moses, Enloe takes home their first conference win of the season, and continues their pursuit of the state playoffs.