MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va -- The Basic School’s Ordnance basketball team went against Training Command’s team during an American League game at the Barber Physical Activity Center on Jan. 16.
Both teams showed fire and desire in the game; but, as always in competition, one will win and one will lose. It was clear to see who was going to sing the blues during the second half.
Each team brought their own style and had ups and downs during the first half. Hasty passes hurt Training Command when it came to keeping possession of the ball. TBS Ordnance was stealing the ball consistently, usually converted the basket.
Training Command didn’t let that continue for long as their defense finally got going to put enough pressure on TBS Ordnance causing them to miss shots and turn the ball over multiple times. At halftime, TBS Ordnance was able to keep the lead, 16-15.
“Training Command usually has a strong team, so I thought that they would be in the lead going into the half,” said Brian Gardner, a spectator. “They’ll get the lead back if they keep taking those open opportunities to make things happen, no matter how small.”
Training Command showed signs of life at the start of the second half as they put the first four points on the board and took back the lead. This was just the tip of the iceberg. TBS Ordnance, playing the role of the Titanic, began to sink fast.
Similar to Training Command’s abilities early in the game, TBS Ordnance was not able to connect with their teammates and turnovers were turned into fast breaks. Training Command was running the show from that point on, running plays flawlessly on offense and defense, while still giving the spectators some excitement by pulling out a few trick plays.
TBS Ordnance tried to comeback by shooting outside the arc, but weren’t able to get the ball to go in. At the end of the game, Training Command had taken out TBS Ordnance, 43-25.
“We had a good flow going,” said Marcquell Roy, head coach, Training Command. “We still have things to work on, but so far we have zero losses and I expect that we are going to keep it that way as we progress though the season.”