George "big" over T.J. at Thunderdome (2/13/09)

by MARTY CESARIO

Thomas Jefferson 45
George Washington 68

Brevity would suit me well here. You, too. First, a hesitant grimace... and now I'll let 'er rip. 

T.J. misfired. Then George Washington pounded 'em.

Sorry. That's what stinks about brevity: It's cold-blooded at times... which is why I want to share some more.

The 7th-ranked Patriots just took their first loss in an emotional overtime battle to 5th-ranked Denver East. This bear had been poked. Unfortunately for the Spartans, they drew "next." Head coach, GRANT LAHMAN, hoped to counter his T.J. squad's size disadvantage with some great outside shooting. Junior studs RAY RILEY and CHRIS CARTER are absolutely capable of gunning their way to victory over anybody. It didn't happen on this night, though. Nope. Not at all. Those outside shots were off. And I definitely want to give the Patriots guards some credit for their defense. TYRELLE MILLARD, TONY ADAMS, and DEV JOHNSON didn't allow a lot of easy looks and releases. They were as quick as their T.J. counterparts, thicker, taller, and they could press up tightly knowing a brick wall of brutes had their backs when the Spartans tried to drive. Lem'me tell ya... Patriots coach, MICHAEL ROGERS, clearly had the plan and the people working.

The George defense held their opponents to eight points in the first quarter then followed that up by yielding merely four more in the second. Meanwhile, 6'5" senior NOVIAN BALOUS bodied the post and offensive glass early in the game; the ball eventually started coming out so Millard could drain demoralizing three-pointers; then senior star, THOMAS BROPLEH, got his number called. That's 2-3 on the George roster -- 6'5" and about 230 pounds of all-state Man-Thickness. Considering the quick lead, the Patriots really didn't need Bropleh to push too much on offense but they did enjoy his two lenghty flurries of force. Bropleh matched his 25 point scoring average as the Partiots comfortably picked up their 20th win.  

Some good thoughts for the Spartans: After a noticeably extended stay in the locker room at intermission, T.J. did battle their way to the final buzzer. BILLY SPRAGUE gave everything but his last drop of blood to show his Spartan pride. And ZACH JACKSON elevated himself and his game to lead his team in scoring. It was fun watching Jackson and fellow junior, SEBORNE HARRIS, hop to the roof and out-hustle the G.W. big men. They did that on many occasions in the second half. But alright. Enough. Now throw out the game tape. Expect Thomas Jefferson to be fine and have a good chance at earning a sixth straight Sweet 16 berth in Class 4A.     

The lasting impression to keep: George is a Beast! Book your plans to see them at the Coliseum.                 

Final: GWP 68 - TJS 45... GWP (20-1, 5-1) Bropleh 25, Millard 14, Balous 8 ... THS (14-7, 4-2) Jackson 15, Riley 9, Sprague 7