Centennial's Lorenzo Brown dunks for two during the Summit Hospitality Group Invitational Championship as part of the GlaxoSmithKline Holiday Invitational Tournament at Broughton High School Tuesday, December 30, 2008. Centennial defeated Ravenscroft 72-53. (Photo by Jeffrey A. Camarati)
Jan 1, 2009
RALEIGH — When Lorenzo Brown checked out of the game Tuesday night, the sellout crowd at the GlaxoSmithKline Holiday Invitational gave him a standing ovation. If he does what he did at Holliday Gym during the last four days next season at the RBC Center, plenty more standing Os are in his future.
Brown, an N.C. State signee, scored 27 points and had six steals to lead his Roswell (Ga.) Centennial Knights to a 72-53 win over Ravenscroft in the Invitational’s Summit Hospitality Group championship game. Brown averaged 21.0 points per game in leading the Knights to the title in their first Invitational appearance and was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player for his efforts.
“I never have to worry about Lorenzo,” said Centennial coach Allen Whitehart. “I’ve coached him in numerous big games, and he always brings his ‘A’ game when a big game comes. He’s just a big-game player and a phenomenal, phenomenal teammate.”
Brown had some phenomenal teammates, too. Ryan Fleming scored 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting and forward Adrian Rodgers chipped in 13 points and five rebounds.
Whitehart said he didn’t sleep Monday night after his team lacked focus and struggled to put away Knightdale earlier in the day. He’ll surely sleep well on Tuesday night.
Centennial’s superior athleticism and speed negated the Ravens’ mammoth size advantage inside with the 6-foot-11 Matt Wilson and 6-foot-10 Ryan Kelly. Centennial dictated the tempo with its pressure defense, forcing 18 turnovers that led to 24 points.
“My big thing was the athleticism of our team versus theirs,” Whitehart said. “I felt like we were a little more athletic and I figured if we could keep the game spread out and up-tempo, we could probably outdistance them to keep the game in our favor.”
One thing that kept game in Cenntennial’s favor, at least in Ravenscroft coach Kevin Billerman’s eyes, was the way it was officiated.
“I think the game was officiated to their advantage in that there was a lot of hand-checking [and] grabbing; officiated more like a college game I thought,” Billerman said. “And when that happens, our lack of quickness and physical presence hurts us. … They played extremely well. They played a game suited to their taste.”
Kelly scored 26 points to go with nine rebounds, and he was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Wilson finished with 12 points and eight boards, but the Ravens got only 13 points out of the rest of the team.
“We struggled to get into our sets, which I think would have worked well. We just struggled to get there,” Kelly said. “But the bottom line is we didn’t come out to play tonight. We weren’t ready to play, and that’s on everybody’s shoulders. We’re a much better team than we showed today."
The game was close throughout the first half. Ravenscroft started hot in the first quarter, shooting 8-of-17 from the floor to take a 17-12 lead. Kelly and Wilson had their way on the inside, accounting for 12 of their team’s points in the opening eight minutes.
It remained a two-point game into the third, but then fell apart quickly for the Ravens. After a Luke Davis free throw cut Centennial’s lead to 40-38 with 3:24 on the clock, the Ravens turned the ball over on their next six possessions, while Centennial went on a 13-0 run to effectively end the game.
Ravenscroft never made a run in the fourth. After two free throws with 1:00 to play, Whitehart subbed out Brown, bringing the crowd to its feet.
“It meant a lot,” Brown said of the recognition. “I’m going to be here next year and they’re looking forward to seeing me do what I did tonight. I’ve got to bring it.”
Contact Tim Candon at 821-8697 or tcandon@wral.com.
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