Health & Fitness
Sharon Basketball Breaks Out in Second Half
The Eagles used a stellar third quarter to down Foxboro, 59-45, on Tuesday night.
The Sharon High boys basketball team found its offensive rhythm in the third quarter on Tuesday night, and the Eagles rolled past Foxboro, 59-45, at Eagle Gymnasium.
Senior captain Ian Beach was pleased with the Eagles’ performance, which snapped a three-game skid. “It feels pretty good. It was a pretty big win. A lot of kids stepped it up. Good to get on a roll again.”
Sharon was unable to get much going offensively in the first half. The Eagles mustered just five points against the Warriors in the second quarter. However, in the third quarter, Beach moved to point guard, sparking an Eagle flurry.
Find out what's happening in Sharonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Beach says that the change gave the Sharon offense more room to operate. “Everybody stared at Muk [junior guards Brian Mukasa] and Jimmy [Fritzson] up top, but when they moved to the sides, it spread out; there was more space for us to run our offense.”
Head Coach Bruce Jackman said of Beach, “He handled the ball really well, made some great passes for us, got everybody involved in the offense.
Find out what's happening in Sharonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
“We were doing a lot more in the second half than they were in the first half. I think that’s directly attributable to what Ian did with the basketball out front,” Jackman added.
A crucial third-quarter sequence was Fritzson (team-high 21 points) scoring a basket, stealing a Foxboro inbounds pass, finishing the layup while getting fouled, and sinking the free throw – a seven-point swing.
Senior forward Brian Lawrence, who scored nine points and added three rebounds, said, “We moved the ball well, and we executed well. We were going through the plays fully. We were getting three or four passes instead of one or two.”
Beach says that the effort was a collective one. “It was pretty good. Everybody contributed. Brian Lawrence hit a couple shots, Jimmy had a big game, kids came off the bench and did their jobs – that’s all you can ask for.”
Lawrence says that the Eagles played strong defense on Foxboro throughout the game. “We are very active [defensively]. We have the right people in the right places; that’s why we generate a lot of steals.”
Sharon (8-6 overall, 5-6 Hockomock) begins the regular season’s final month with a matchup on Friday night in Attleboro. The Eagles have not yet faced the Bombardiers this season.
Beach said, “We’ve just got to go out, play our game. Hopefully, we can get two in a row.”