Turn-around victories continue to elude Bedford Academy.
The Panthers boys’ basketball team is in its first year in the Public School Athletic League’s Brooklyn AA division — possibly the best in all New York City — after years of title contention in the A Division. The undersized team has been on the cusp of beating divisional opponents such as South Shore, Lincoln, Boys & Girls, and Brooklyn Collegiate this year, but it keeps falling short. And the trend continued in a 76–65 loss to Kennedy at the Cardozo Classic in Queens on Jan 2. The team has to step up to keep pace in a more competitive league, its coach said.
“We got to get a little tougher,” said Bedford head coach Robert Phelps. “In the A Division you might have one or two good players. In the AA you have five, plus two or three more on the bench. This is a great experience for us. We are getting better and we just have to keep competing.”
The Panthers squad, which has yet to win a league game, came out of the gate fast in the first quarter, going on a 7–0 run to take a five-point lead over Kennedy. But the Knights turned up the defensive pressure in the quarter’s final two minutes, when coach Johnny Mathis switched to a press that resulted in a 9–0 run and a 15–12 lead.
Bedford’s small size hurt it on the boards in the second quarter — Kennedy consistently snatched second-chance opportunities off of offensive rebounds. The Panthers team made up for a lack in size in its transition game and took a 29–28 lead heading into halftime.
After the break, Kennedy senior guard Justin Batiz contributed seven points to a 9–2 run. The team out-scored Bedford 23–15 in the third to take a 51–44 lead into the fourth.
The Panthers were down heading into the fourth quarter, but the squad finally found its outside-shooting stroke and went on a run, ultimately out-scoring the Knights 17–10 in the quarter thanks to a 10-point performance from sophomore guard Angelo Stuart. Regular time ended with the scored tied at 61.
But Batiz, who had been in foul trouble most of the afternoon, scored 11 of his 26 points in the extra period, and the Panthers couldn’t keep up.
The squad is struggling with fundamental issues, but it is on the cusp of turning things around, one player said.
“It’s been the little things like 50-50 balls, offensive rebounds, free throws, and not giving up second-chance shots,” Bedford senior guard Anthony Gibbs said. “We are right there, and hopefully we can work on those in the second half of the season and start getting some wins.”
