By STEVE SINISKI
After three straight first-round byes in the postseason and a home game in the second round, the tenth-seeded Bruins found themselves in unfamiliar territory last Saturday at No. 7 Elmont. Baldwin (10-9 overall, 7-5 in Conference II play) battled back from an eight-point deficit to take a 52-50 lead with 2:18 to play on Aaron Weaver's fifth three-pointer of the game, but a three-point play and three free throws in the final minute ended the Bruins upset bid. Elmont advanced to a second round matchup with No. 3 Uniondale on the strength of the 56-52 win.
"We had several chances to tie the game or take the lead," Baldwin coach Darius Burton said. "But they executed down the stretch. We just couldn't get over the top but fought until the very end."
Trailing 34-26 at halftime, Burton and his Bruins turned up the heat on the defensive side of the floor, relying on the team's ability to press. The frenetic pace helped Baldwin trim the deficit to just two after outscoring Elmont 15-9 in the third quarter. The Spartans' tandem of point guard Michael Reid, who scored 22 points, including three three-pointers, and Elmo Aponte, who accounted for 10 of Elmont's 13 points in the fourth quarter, however, proved too much in the end.
"Their point guard played like he didn't want the season to end," Burton said. "Our guys got a taste of the playoffs and had an up and down year with some rocky roads. Hopefully we'll learn from the things we did wrong and get over that feeling of defeat."
Weaver spearheaded a Baldwin perimeter attack that racked up nine threes on the day and ultimately forced Elmont to change its defensive philosophy over the final eight minutes. After watching Weaver, Greg DeBonis (two three-pointers) and Ralph Manigat (two) make good use of their open space against a zone, the Spartans switched things up and went to a man defense. Because Sean Harry had been slowed by an illness, the Bruins needed to come up big with jump shots to have a chance at advancing to the second round for a fourth straight year.
"I thought offensively we did a good job," Burton said. "We had to be more perimeter-oriented than normal."
DeBonis a senior, like Harry and Jamaal Roche, will not be back next year, and DeBonis may have saved his best for last.
"He left it all out on the court," Burton said of DeBonis, who even dove into the crowd for a loose ball against Elmont. "He single-handedly brought us back win his effort, intensity and energy. I'm going to miss the seniors and it's sad the way [the season] ended. But we have to be ready to bounce back next year. This year made me stronger as a coach."
