Blazer offense sputters on Senior Night

FEB. 18, NELSON H. KOBREN MEMORIAL GYMNASIUM-

After a resounding victory over Gaithersburg and a near win on the road at Wootton, Blair fell into their old habits on Senior Night tonight against Whitman, falling 59-45 to the Vikings. The Blazers' (2-17) ineffectual offense, including three points total in the second quarter, and frequent turnovers led to a blowout loss against a team that was far from Blair's toughest competition this season.

Blair had a tough time putting points on the board the entire night, needing two or three attempts to make even simple lay-ups, sometimes not even converting then. The offense was re-energized as the clock wound down on Blair's final home game of the regular season, but by then it was too late, Whitman had already built an insurmountable lead on two quarters of basically unopposed offense.

Senior swingman Kenan Myers had a typically productive night, netting 16 points; he was also one of the few Blazers who did any real work under the glass. Blair's post players were dominated on the boards all night.

Mistake-ridden basketball resurfaced tonight, after a few games under wraps. Passes were thrown away and transitions bungled the entire night. Generally explosive senior guard Makonnen Brown could not produce much besides turnovers. Brown certainly did not make his presence felt the way he usually does, he was unable to penetrate the Viking defense at all tonight.

The Blazers' outside shooting was one bright spot in the match, their seven three pointers kept Whitman from completely running away with the game. Normally sharp-shooting sophomore guards Marquis Tyler and Jaydee Encarnacion however did not make their usual long-range contributions; neither of them put anything on the board.

Tonight's turnovers and sputtering offense typified Blair's play for most of the season. If the Blazers cannot make a turnaround and overcome these mistakes in the next week, then they cannot hope for any real results in the playoffs. Blair's final game of the regular season is on Tuesday, Feb. 22 at Wheaton at 7 p.m.