The Centreville boys basketball got into a 17-point halftime hole after an offensively anemic second quarter, made a frantic rally in the second half but ended up losing 62-59 Wednesday at Battle Creek St. Philip.
Outscored 19-2 in the second stanza, the Bulldogs battled back with a 19-7 effort in the third quarter and a 21-16 fourth quarter.
Demarco Taylor led Centreville (1-3) with 15 points, Kalvin Ludwig and Chase Alexander each posted 11 and Matt Clements added 10. Cudwig and Clements also grabbed a team-high nine rebounds each, Jon Peckinpaugh, who scored eight points, collected four steals and Alexander chipped in five assists. Eli Schwartz connected on a 3-pointer en route to four points.
Kevin Greenmen registered 22 points for St. Philip (4-0)
“We started out strong in the first quarter and faltered in the second quarter for the third straight game,” Bulldogs coach Corey Smith said. “After halftime the guys went back to playing Bulldog basketball. We had to fight for basically every point tonight. The kids never hung their heads.
“St. Philip is an excellent team with a good coach … taking nothing away from them. Although it’s a loss, we definitely have learned something … no matter the opponent, we’re here to fight.”