Stratford Star

Red Devils gain on state berth (boys hoop)

The Stratford High boys basketball team used a balanced effort to turn aside Joel Barlow of Redding, 67-47, in a South-West Conference matchup at Needham Gymnasium on Friday night.

Junior guard Marcus Vereen scored a game-high 20 points, including 13 in the first half, while classmates Kinshawn Pettway and Bernard Brantley chipped in with 14 and 11 respectively for the Red Devils, who improved to 7-6 overall (5-3 in the SWC).

Sam Breiner and William Hudson added seven points apiece off the bench, as Stratford seized control of the game early on with a 14-2 first-quarter run.

“We’re fighting, scrapping,” Red Devil coach Paul Dudzinski said. “We have to play that way... I thought the guys had a great effort tonight.”

Facing a 15-point halftime deficit, Barlow narrowed its gap to 45-35 on 3-pointer from Nolan Stauffer with 1:55 left to play in the third quarter.

Stratford responded with a 12-0 flurry to close the frame, extending its lead to 57-35 heading into the final period.

Pettway ignited it with a 3-pointer from the left wing, Vereen scored in transition and Brantley capped it off with seven straight points — on a three and four foul shots.

“We have to play fast,” Dudzinski said.

The run lasted just 1:40, but Barlow never again came within fewer than 20 points.

Barlow (6-8) grabbed its only lead of the game, 3-2, on an old-fashioned three-point play from Liam Rooney at the 6:21 mark of the first quarter.

Stratford countered with a 14-2 run over the next 4:02, with back-to-back jumpers by Vereen jump-starting the Red Devils.

Brantley then scored on a fast-break layup following a steal at mid-court, before Will Bracken notched the Falcons lone points of the stretch with a basket in the post.

Arron Smith, Brantley and Hudson scored consecutively, pushing the Stratford advantage to 16-5 with 2:07 remaining in the opening frame.

Joey Greenspan, Barlow’s 6-5 senior center, shook free for back-to-back baskets to stop the Red Devil deluge.

Greenspan, who had a team-high 18 points for the Falcons, single-handedly kept Barlow within striking distance in the first half by scoring 10 points.

A brace of foul shots from Greenspan cut Stratford’s lead to 22-11, until Breiner, a freshman forward, came off the bench to bury a 3-pointer from the left corner.

Breiner dropped in a reverse layup on the baseline off an assist from Brantley, sandwiched around three free throws from Vereen, as the Red Devils carried a 38-23 edge into the locker room at halftime.

Bracken and Greenspan tallied quickly to start the third quarter, as the Falcons pulled within 11 points at 38-27.

Kyle Small’s jumper and a pair of free throws from Smith extended the Stratford margin to 42-27, before Stauffer sank a jumper and Jake Lightman converted a three-point play.

Pettway and Stauffer traded 3-pointers from there, with the second three from Pettway propelling Stratford’s game-sealing 12-0 run.

The victory leaves the Red Devils needing just one victory over their final seven games to qualify for the Class L state tournament.

Stratford faced unbeaten Kolbe Cathedral (13-0) at the Shehan Center in Bridgeport on Wednesday and will host Amistad Academy (9-4) at Needham Gymnasium on Friday night at 7.

“We’re trying to get as many games [won] as we can,” Dudzinski said.