by GARFIELD HEIGHTS, Ohio– The Garfield Bulldogs pretty much led from start to finish Tuesday night and a big part of that was the stellar play from freshman guard Marcus Johnson.
Johnson–earning himself game MVP– helped lead his team past the Tarblooders, 68-53.
One main reason for the offensive spark he provided was the ability to come out and make a statement early.
That proved to be a difference-maker Tuesday night.
“Our goal was to come out hard so that’s what we did and that’s why we won the game,” Johnson said.
He ended the night with a game-high 21 points. Not just him, but other players like Tommie Benn and Calvin Little carved out an offensive role that was just too much to handle for the Tarblooders.
The Bulldogs ended the first quarter on a 14-3 run to take a 19-13 advantage after the first quarter. A big part of that was their ability to force the Tarblooders into quick shots, something to try and help diminish the lead a little bit.
Staying focused and locked in offensively helped take care of that lead throughout the night for Johnson and his team.
“Everybody knows to stay focused on our team so that’s what we did,” Johnson said. “I feel like we’re good, we’re really good.”
From there, they continued to make things difficult for the Tarblotters. The trio of Theodore Castro, Jaidyn Prather and Jakobi Laster did all they can to close the first half off strong, but they couldn’t contain the easy fastbreak points from the Bulldogs.
With that, they faced a 37-24 deficit at the break, with the three of them combining for 21 of their team’s 24 points.
Their lead never got within single digits from there. Senior guard Tommie Benn was a force all night offensively as he finished with 11 points during the win, really getting to the rim and making his presence known from the first quarter.
Calvin Little Jr. finished the night with nine points along with seven from Deandre Jones, who was a force all night inside the paint.
Not many shots are going to be made with the way Deandre Jones comes running at you inside the paint @sonnyjohnson32 @SportsKee1 pic.twitter.com/kbgCrYaUMI
— Michael Trivisonno (@MichaelTriv_) December 27, 2022
For the Tarblooders, Jakobi Laster and Theodore Castro led the way offensively, scoring 14 and 13 points, respectively during the loss.
