Final blog Jv basketball

              Norton won a close game on the road against a tough Dover Sherborn team. Norton was behind in the waning minute, when Brett Gauvin tied the game and sent it to overtime. The extra session the 2 squads kept trading baskets when finally Norton fouled a Dover player and the player got frustrated and yelled at the ref which caused the official to give him a Technical foul. Norton was down by one and Gauvin headed to the free throw line knocked down both and put them up by 1 Norton ended up on winning this game in overtime by 3 with a final score 52-49. Norton was not surprised with this W because in their first meeting they won by 18 points, but they were surprised with how close this game was.

             The starting line up for Norton was fighting, but not making the shots the are use to. Coach Jolly went to the bench early and often with player such as Nick Ruby, Joe Collamore, and Sam Baker. After their bench lead them back into the game the starters came back and kept the game close then when it came down to the last minutes they closed it out.

             Norton won this game with clutch offense by Sophomore guard Brett Gauvin knocking down free throws in overtime, and big shots by Junior Ryan Brown at the end of regulation. Norton got key stops when the game was up for grabs with big rebounds by Freshman Nick Ruby and Sophomore Ryan Mazzola. They also got their leading scorer going Tyler Troiano with 16 big points in his limited minutes with the team. This game brought the team together and built chemistry, mid way through the season.

             Nick Ruby, 1 of the only 2 freshman on the team came in as sixth man every game, and really contributed to this team. 8 big points all in the fourth quarter. He also had a key block with 2 minutes left in the game with the game in the balance. His final stat line before he fouled out was 8 points 12 boards 2 blocks and 3 assists. When he got his fifth foul and was taken out he got the players on the bench to cheer on the team which was very helpful.  Many of his team mates truly believe this is the game when he helped the team the most.

            When I interviewed Ruby he said that the moral in the locker room at halftime was low. They expected to be winning this game and when they weren't it got them all very angry. "We were all just kind of angry because of our sloppy play". Once they got going in the second half everyone was into it and leading this team on. "We kind of came together as a team in the Locker room." I asked him how he was able to control the glass like he did. He said that he was working harder than them and getting to the ball faster. That is how Ruby really helped his team getting extra possessions. 

              After this game Norton played as well as they ever did as a team. Winning 3 games straight and doing it in impressive fashion. In these games they had 2 player averaging double figure scoring in Troiano, Ryan Brown, and great guard and forward play by Gauvin, Sam Baker, Nick Ruby, and Joe Collomore. This game truly was a turning point for this young team made up of mostly underclassmen. "That game made our team believe in each other and trusted each other" Said Freshman Center Nick Ruby.


Link to Interview:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8Z2clpIY-w

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