Sports
Golden Tornadoes Dash Into Season With Win
Lawrence boys defeat Oceanside, 60-55, in the 6th Annual Tip-Off Classic.
The Lawrence boys basketball team didn't want to open the season the same way the school's football team ended theirs: with a loss.
"They came out with a lot of fire in the second half. I credit the senior leadership on this team for that," Golden Tornadoes varsity coach Peter Linderman said of his team after the Thursday game.
Trailing at halftime 25-21 to non-league opponent Oceanside High in the Oceanside Rotary Club's 6th Annual Tip-Off Classic, Lawrence came out scortching hot, hitting their first three 3-pointers of the second half from the right hand of sophomore swingman Clifton Lyerly. His nine points kept their deficit at four, 34-30.
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The Golden Tornadoes, infused with equal amounts of experience and speed, utilized both by incorporating a full-court press defense early in the second quarter. It was that same press defense that allowed the offense to open up in the second half.
"[The press] is our style of play on defense," Linderman said. "We have very talented guards and we're going to let them win games for us."
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Junior guard Eddie Robinson (12 points and 3 assists) and senior swingman Samson Bialastok (8 points, 4 rebounds) pressured the Sailor ball handlers all night, forcing them to pick up and lose control of their dribbles.
It was Bialastok's wide open eight-foot jumper from the right corner that gave Lawrence their first lead of the game at 49-48 with 4:16 left to play.
Each team would trade scores until freshman guard Dwayne Daniel had a pretty double-clutch finger roll through a conjested lane to retake and hold on to the lead, 53-51.
It was a great start to a new season for Linderman's team, who stumbled out of the gates last season to an 0-4 start.
"It's always a plus to get the first one out of the way early," Linderman said.
Daniel added 11 points coming off the bench for the Golden Tornadoes, while one half of the Shamseldin twins, Ibraheem, chipped in with 13 points and four rebounds. Oceanside senior forward Greg Gilbert led all scorers with 16 points and had 11 rebounds.
Six-foot-4-inch sophomore center Hunter Sabety scored 14 points and had four blocks shots on the evening for Oceanside.
Lawrence will play host to Massapequa on Dec. 11 at 12:30 p.m.
