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BOYS BASKETBALL: Edmond Sumner’s 30 Points, Lifts Country Day To An 80-75 Win Over Cass Tech
DETROIT – Players aren’t the only ones who may have big shoes to fill. Coaches can too, and Detroit Country Day head coach Mark Brey is facing that very challenge.
Replacing a legend who won nine state titles, and coached several NBA players is no easy feat, but Brey and his staff are off to a good start. The Yellowjackets are off to a 2-1 start, including an 80-75 win over Detroit Cass Tech yesterday.
"We expected it to be very competitive," he said. "We talk about it all the time about how it’s going to be a single, or double possession game. So you have to make the plays to get that single possession."
Both teams traded baskets early on in the game, until Cass Tech made their run. A 10-5 run to end the first quarter, capped off by a Rob Edwards 3-pointer, gave them a 25-18 lead.
Country Day stormed back to take the lead at 30-29, on a basket by Edmond Sumner. Edwards answered with another 3-pointer to regain the lead, and Cass Tech never looked back, taking a 45-36 lead into the half.
"When you have the best player in the state, you can make up for a lot of mistakes," Brey said. "All of the mistakes we made in the first half went away when Edmond plays the way he is capable of playing."
Brey inherited one of the best players in the state in shooting guard Edmond Sumner. He will be attending Xavier next fall, and showed why a lot of schools wanted his services.
Down 51-44 with 4:22 left in the third, Sumner hit two 3-pointers in a row to pull Country Day within one, at 51-50. Sumner went on an offensive explosion in the quarter, scoring 11 points and giving Cass Tech the 59-56 lead.
"The team needed me to lead them to a win today," Sumner said. "I didn’t want to lose, and once I hit one, the others usually fall."
The final quarter was much like the first, drama filled, with both teams trading baskets. Charles Key tied the game at 70-70 with 3:18 left in the game, but a ensuing 3-pointer on the next play by Maceo Baston, 14 points, gave Country Day the lead for good.
Cass Tech turned the ball over down the stretch, and two free throws by Baston iced the game with :13.7 seconds remaining. Country Day completed their comeback win, led by Sumner’s 30 points.
"This was a huge win for us," said Sumner. "It was a confidence booster, and proved the doubters wrong about us."
Rasheed Wallace’s son, Nazir, chipped in 15 points and 13 rebounds for Country Day, and Rob Edwards paced Cass Tech with 19 points. Kenny Carpenter had 17 points.
