Baldwin's got its foot on the gas pedal and slowing down isn't an option as the second half of the Conference AA-I basketball season gets underway. The Bruins (10-2 overall, 5-2 in Conference AA-I) ripped off their eighth consecutive win—and fourth in six days—last Saturday, knocking off Malverne, 63-42, behind yet another stifling defensive effort.
"In every game, I can honestly say that the press has given every team fits," Baldwin coach Darius Burton said.
The Mules scored just 12 first-half points, including a total of four in the second quarter, becoming the latest in a line of opponents to struggle with Baldwin's pressing and trapping defense. "Our press has been getting a lot of turnovers and wearing teams down," Burton said, noting the importance of the effort when the offense struggles, as it did against Malverne. "It was a big win, because our offense didn't play well. The shots weren't falling and we just didn't finish at all [around the basket]."
Senior Dominique Aberdeen led the offense with 14 points, senior guard Ashanti DePass had 12, and senior point guard Donte Howell chipped in with 10 points and six assists.
The Bruins turned in perhaps their biggest conference victory of the season at Hempstead last Friday, defeating the Tigers, 66-49. Things didn't start out great, as Hempstead opened up a three-point lead after one quarter. But the Bruins rolled over the next 16 minutes, holding the Tigers to single-digit point totals in the second (seven points) and third (nine) quarters. "[Allowing] 55 points a game is our goal but we've been doing a great job lately," Burton said.
Aberdeen led all scorers with 20, and DePass added 17. "He can flat out score," Burton said of Aberdeen, who leads Baldwin in the scoring department on the season and averages more than 15 points per game. "He gets in the lane at will and finishes at the basket."
The victory avenged an earlier 62-55 defeat to the Tigers, in which Howell was sidelined by injury. "The kids really wanted this one," Burton said.
What may get lost in the shuffle of the Bruins' suffocating defense is an ever-strengthening rebounding game led by T'ziah Wood-Smith. The 6-5 junior is averaging a team-high 11 boards per game. "The [team's] rebounding has been much better," Burton said. "They're doing a good job and doing the little things like rebounding better as a team, boxing out and holding teams to one shot."
Baldwin travels to Valley Stream Central on Friday at 6:15 p.m. and looks to sweep the season series after winning the first meeting, 83-63, on Jan. 4. Aberdeen and Howell combined for 11 steals, while Wood-Smith pulled down eight boards. "They're starting to play with some character," Burton said.
