Second-Half Collapse Spoils Blazers’ Home Opener

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It was the exact opposite start and finish for Centralia College men’s basketball from its previous five games. In those games, the Blazers chugged to a slow start and came alive in the second half.

But on Wednesday, during the Blazers’ home opener against Portland Community College, Centralia College blasted out the gates on fire then flamed out in the second half in an 87-72 non-league defeat.

It was a disappointing defeat, the Blazers’ sixth in a row to start the season, after leading by as many as 10 points late in the first half. It all points to struggles with a lack of depth and conditioning, Trailblazers coach Jason Moir said

“Not being in great shape and not having depth, it’s tough to play for 40 minutes and we’ve just got to continue to work on pushing these guys a little bit harder,” Moir said.

That combined with a poor night of shooting from long range made it tough for the Blazers to climb back in it after surrendering the lead midway through the second half.

The Blazers shot 44.8% from the field, but connected on just 3 of 16 (18.8%) from deep, including 0 for 6 in the second half.

Portland, meanwhile, knocked down 10 3-pointers on 42% shooting from the arc, including 4 of 8 in the second half.

“We’re just struggling offensively, and when you’re struggling offensively and you can’t play defense, that’s not a good thing,” Moir said. 

The Blazers are also a young team that lacks height, which also adds to the defensive issues. Their tallest player is 6-foot-4 (Abraham Konan), they have 6-foot-3 Adrian Brown and the rest are 6-foot-2 or shorter. But Moir saw some positive signs Wednesday and is confident the team can turn the corner.

“You’ve just got to try to build on those and fix those little things,” Moir said. “Be in better shape and make shots when we need to make them… We’ll be OK. They’re young and they work hard.”

Central Kitsap alum Colby White led the Blazers with a game-high 23 points, Wendell Davis Jr. added 12 and Abraham Konan and Adrian Brown each had 10.

W.F. West alum Kayden Kelly five rebounds, three points, three assists and two steals. Winlock alum Bryce Cline added five points, one rebound and one assist.

Centralia College gets back in action when it hosts Skagit Valley at 4 p.m. on Saturday.