BREWER, Maine — With Brewer High’s Matt Pushard averaging better than 23 points per game, it was Bangor’s intention to slow down the powerhouse senior post player.
That tactic proved somewhat successful on Wednesday night, but the Witches proved that their corps of guards also pack a potent offensive punch.
Guards Kobe Rogerson and Carter Smith combined for 31 points, including 17 during a second-half surge that carried Brewer to a 54-43 boys basketball victory over archrival Brewer in front of a capacity crowd.
“I think with our team you’ve got to pick your poison,” said Smith, a senior who finished with 15 points, three rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots.
“You stop Matt down low and you’ve got four shooters outside,” he added. “If you can’t stop Matt, he’s going to have a field day.”
Coach Clayton Blood’s undefeated Class A Witches (7-0) cranked up the defensive intensity and limited Class AA Bangor to 13 second-half points after enduring a turnover-plagued first half.
There was a lot of energy in the building and the Brewer players seemed to be feeling it early.
“With the gym packed, it was just crazy,” said Rogerson, a sophomore who tossed in a game-high 16 points on 5-for-5 shooting that included four 3-pointers. He also grabbed four rebounds.
“We settled down and we came out pretty good in the second half,” he added.
Carl Parker’s 2-5 Rams did a solid job of bottling up Pushard, who finished with nine points, 12 rebounds and two assists. Junior Peter Kemble shouldered much of the load guarding the bigger, taller Pushard, but Brewer’s speedy guards more than made up the difference.
Freshman guard Damien Vance added seven points for Brewer, which went 8-for-12 from the field in the second half and overcame 23 turnovers.
“It’s fun to have Matt on your team because obviously teams are going to pick him out, try to defend him,” Rogerson said. “We got a lot of open looks thanks to Matt and Carter.”
Justin Smith sparked the Rams with 13 points two assists and two steals, while Ethan Dorman contributed eight points, seven rebounds, three steals and two assists. Kemble posted six points, nine rebounds and a blocked shot and Phillip Slick made five steals.
Bangor went 5-for-25 (20 percent) from the 3-point arc.
Brewer saved its best for last. The hosts didn’t take their first lead until Vance drained a 3-pointer off a Rogerson assist with 6:28 to play.
That basket, which came during what would be a game-changing 11-0 burst, gave the Witches a 43-40 advantage.
Pushard continued the run with a free throw, then fed Smith for a 3-pointer with an inside-out pass. Rogerson finished off the rally with a 7-foot floater from the baseline that gave Brewer a 49-40 lead with 4:33 to play.
“I think we just needed to withstand their (first-half run),” Blood said. “(Justin) Smith got some better looks in the first half and their role players hit two or three 3’s — which they didn’t hit in the second half.”
Bangor, which had generated some good looks with its active hands and transition game in the first half, struggled after intermission. The Rams made 10 of their 19 turnovers in the last 16 minutes and wound up shooting only 6-for-23 (26 percent) in the half.
In fact, Bangor scored just five points over the final 10 minutes, 22 seconds of action.
The Rams clung to a 30-26 halftime lead after having twice led by as many as eight points.
Bangor jumped out to a 14-6 lead less than six minutes into the contest. A George Payne free throw opened an 8-0 surge that included Dorman’s 18-footer, a Smith 3-pointer and Slick’s steal and lay-in at the 2:18 mark.
However, Brewer broke a scoring drought of almost five minutes on a conventional three-point play by Smith at the 1:10 mark and his drive to the hoop in the final minute made it a three-point game after one period.