The Cubs took on the Harvard Westlake Wolverines for the second time this season on a neutral court in Bishop Alemany’s gym. The game had major seeding implications for the Open Division playoffs that the team hopes to do well in. The game came with much fanfare as it was the first televised matchup of the season.

Quarter 1

The starters for the final of the mission league tournament matchup against Harvard Westlake are the same as they have been all season long: James Keefe, Neil Owens, Mason Butler, CJ Jones, and Anthony Lucenti. The Cubs lost the tip and gave up an almost immediate post-up layup to the Wolverines and go down a quick two. They followed that up with a missed shot that led to a three for the Wolverines. The 5-0 deficit is not how the Cubs looked to start the game. They further their struggles with a turnover but an offensive foul by the Wolverines gives them the chance to atone. The Wolverine guard shows that he will be force in this game as he knocks down a fadeaway from the baseline to collect his fifth point of the game. The Cubs call timeout after the 7-0 start. Out of the brief stop in play, the Cubs fail to improve as they continue to be unable to produce quality looks at the hoop and give up another post layup. The Cubs are finally able to get a break when Neil gets fouled on his way up to the hoop. After the foul, the Cubs have to wait for their free throws as the game halts for a TV timeout. Neil knocks down both free throws to finally get the Cubs on the board. The Cubs force a tough shot but can’t take the opportune miss to cut the lead as a CJ three goes in and out. The Wolverines do manage to convert a transition layup to put them back up by nine. The Cubs seem to have gotten more aggressive in attacking the rim after the timeout and Lucenti earns and hits two free throws. The Wolverines hit a layup to respond but Colby puts a layup of his own into the hoop right away. The Wolverines hit two tough shots within five feet to extend their lead to eleven. The strength and physicality of the Wolverines have really given the Cubs problems as they can’t seem to win second chance possessions and are getting dominated in the paint. A foul means that the Wolverines are sent to the line but the big man misses two to bail out the Cubs. The Cubs once more fail to capitalize and turn the ball over with a travel. The team responds to the blunder with some tough defense that yields an airball and a transition flurry. The madness concludes with a foul that sends Keefe to the line, where he converts one of two to end the quarter.

Score 7-17

If the Cubs want to win this game, they must address the obvious problems they’re having with the size and strength advantage that the Wolverines have inside. Too many times the Cubs have given up position on a post up that leads to an easy layup. The team must also move the ball with more fluidity in order to produce a look at the hoop besides free throws.

Quarter 2

The Cubs open the second quarter on the bad trend they have established of turnovers. The Cubs do get an open three but fail to convert the chance. The defense seems to have improved as the Wolverines can’t get a sniff, but the team bails out their opponents with another turnover. The Cubs give up a three but force the Wolverines into an early bonus, allowing CJ to hit two free throws. The Cubs go right back down by 13 as the Wolverine guard notches his twelfth and fourteenth points of the night on back to back fadeaway jumpers. The Cubs have no answer as they go down by a game-high fifteen points before play is stopped for a TV timeout. The chances the Cubs produce are solid but they are struggling to hit any shots aside from free throws as they are at an astonishing 0%. The Cubs come out of the break in a 2-3 zone that keeps the Wolverines off the scoreboard. The Cubs again win free throws from fouls on the defensive rebounds but only hit one of the two shots they get. Another layup from the Wolverines means that the Cubs are down by 16. The Cubs get their first non free throw points off a Keefe jam, but a loose ball foul on the other end means that the Cubs must come up with another stop. They do and Mason hits a runner to bring the lead to thirteen; unfortunately, the Wolverines hit a deep two and win free throws to extend their lead to sixteen once more. The Cubs turn the ball over again and leave 18 seconds left in the half for the Wolverines to extend the lead. The Wolverines penetrate the paint to find an open corner three-point shooter and extend their halftime advantage to 19.

Score 14-33

The Cubs must find a way to stop giving up offensive rebounds and knock down some shots if they want to claw their way back into this game. The Wolverines have owned the paint on both ends of the court and, led by their guard’s fourteen halftime points, controlled the game. The Cubs also need to fix their turnover problem if the tall task is to be accomplished.

Quarter 3

The five that starts the half is the same that started the game. The Wolverines get the ball first but some strong defense from the Cubs keeps them off the board. The Cubs look good on their first attack but fumble the ball at the last moment to turn the ball over. The Cubs fend off the Wolverines on the next possession but fail to hit a layup to kickstart the comeback. The Wolverine guard comes down and proves that the first quarter wasn’t an aberration as he sinks an and-one layup. The Cubs finally hit something from the outside moments later with a corner three from CJ. Neil hits one from the top right after and the Cubs force a timeout from the Wolverines. The 6-0 run cuts the lead to 16, still a large total to overcome. The Wolverines turn the ball over right after the timeout but the Cubs fail to cut further into the lead. The possession ends with a scary fall from Lucenti who gets undercut and flipped on an attempt to win an offensive rebound. The scare prompts a timeout and the Cubs send out the same five to fight on. The break proves effective for the Wolverines as they again work their for a cutter that notches a layup. The Cubs miss a three which leads to the Wolverines working the clock extremely well before hitting a wide-open layup. The lead twenty before Coach Adams decides he’s seen enough and calls a timeout. The Cubs come out of the timeout and force two consecutive fouls from the Wolverines before Neil finally hits a layup. The Wolverines remain unfazed as they convert a baseline fadeaway to make the lead twenty once more. Neil hits one of two free throws on the other end before Keefe hits a layup that cuts the lead to 17. Keefe hits another layup, this one an and-one, to cut the lead to 14 with fifty seconds left. Both teams miss their shots to end the quarter.

Score 28-42

The Cubs need to hit threes and get rebounds in order to clobber their way back into the game, seemingly a lost cause at this point. A perfect storm would be required for the Cubs to mount the comeback.

Quarter 4

The five that starts the fourth includes Jared and Colby in place of CJ and Mason. The Cubs hit a quick layup thanks to Keefe’s offensive rebound and force a turnover on the other end. Neil hits an and-one free throw, slicing the lead to single digits. The Cubs give up an and-one layup of their own to put themselves up by 12. Keefe hits a fadeaway jumper off the glass right away to respond. The Cubs win another possession on the defensive end to allow Jared to hit a wide open layup. The Wolverines force Lucenti into his fourth foul and hit one of two free throws to make the game a nine-point contest. The Wolverines clearly try to milk the clock but a Keefe block leads to a Wolverine foul, giving the ball back to the Cubs with 4:25 remaining in the game. A TV timeout gives the team a break before they attempt to erase the deficit with a final push. The Cubs get the ball first out of the timeout, giving Colby a solid three pointer. He misses but Keefe forces a fourth foul against the Wolverine center on the other end to win the ball back. Lucenti misses a three that could’ve made it a two-possession game and the Cubs give up a layup on the other end. The Cubs atone for the mistake immediately with a Lucenti fadeaway but the Wolverine guard won’t go away as he scores his twenty-third point on a drive to the basket. The Wolverines take a full timeout and Coach Adams tries to plan for an eleven-point comeback with 2:40 remaining. The Cubs come out of the timeout and get an open look at a three but again fail to convert the chance. The Wolverines miss their shot and Neil comes close on a deep one. Keefe forces the Wolverines into a turnover on their end of the court and the Cubs have a chance to cut the lead. As Neil nearly gets called for five seconds when trying to inbound, he calls a timeout to save the possession and hopefully help the Cubs’ cause. Keefe nearly converts an and-one but misses both free throws to leave the lead at 11. The Cubs force a bad Wolverine shot but Keefe misses a one and one to make the comeback virtually impossible with 51 seconds remaining. CJ hits a quick three to cut the lead to nine but only 44 seconds are left to score the remainder of the points. The Cubs nearly steal the ball but are called for a foul instead. The Cubs foul again to stop the clock but still aren’t in the bonus. The Wolverine guard hits two free throws and the lead is 11 before the Cubs hit a layup. The effort is too little too late as the Cubs are bested by nine in the end.

Score 44-53

The Cubs played much better in the final quarter but simply had too much to overcome by the time they figured out the Wolverines and fell by nine. Better free throw and three-point shooting would have allowed them a better chance at the end.