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King gets unlikely boost in win against Constitution

01/17/2018, 2:00am EST
By Owen McCue
Martin Luther King coach Sean Colson (above) led his team to a win against Constitution. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Martin Luther King coach Sean Colson (above) led his team to a win against Constitution. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Owen McCue (@Owen_McCue)
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Before the season started, Sean Colson sat each of his players down to let them know what he expected for the upcoming season.

The Martin Luther King head coach knew this year’s squad would need to define roles. Everyone would have to contribute in some way for the Cougars.

Sure senior guard Denelle Holly and senior forward Will McNair had Division I interest, but Colson did not see either capable of carrying this team without some help.

“We’re a team that we don’t really have a star,” Colson said. “Denelle and Will are our best players, but I don’t really look at them as stars, so we get a lot of input from everybody.”

Senior forward Yves Casimir heard Colson’s message loud and clear.

With the 6-foot-9 McNair and 6-foot-5 senior forwards Jerry Andrews and Isiah Anderson ahead of him on the frontcourt depth chart, Casimir knew his minutes would be limited. However, buying into Colson’s talk of roles, he also knew he’d have to be ready when his number was called.

One such moment arrived in Tuesday’s 69-60 win against Constitution at Benjamin Franklin High School.

With Anderson unavailable and McNair and Andrews both dealing with foul trouble, Casimir used his extra minutes to score six points, grab seven rebounds and block one shot in the victory.

“It’s not that many times where I get the opportunity to go in when both of them are down, so I just played the way I know I play,” Casimir said. “I just helped and it worked out the way it’s supposed to work out.”

McNair scored Martin Luther King’s first two baskets on Tuesday, but he picked up two fouls before the end of the first quarter. With McNair out for the rest of the half, Casimir used his lanky 6-foot-5 frame to protect the paint and secure defensive rebounds. He had four points to go along with four rebounds in the first half as the Cougars held a 27-13 lead at halftime.

Back on the floor to start the second half, McNair picked up where he left off, scoring 12 of his team-high 16 points after the break. His and-one near the midway point of the fourth quarter gave the Cougars a 19-point lead.

Led by Damon Wall, who scored 22 points, and Jahmir Marable-Williams, who had 20, Constitution narrowed the deficit to single digits down the stretch. With the Cougars clinging to their lead, Casimir was called upon once again. He grabbed two key defensive rebounds and knocked down 3-of-4 free throw attempts to put away the game in the final seconds.

“I though Yves Casimir came off the bench and got rebounds and played great D,” Colson said. “He doesn’t really play much. Today, because of the foul trouble to the two big guys and Isiah not being here, he played a great game. Lot of rebounds, lot of energy, defense. He made his free throws, made his layups...He played well, and we need that.”

Casimir wasn’t the only Cougar to fill a role on Tuesday. All eight Martin Luther King players who saw action had four-or-more points, and in addition to Casimir five scored at least seven points.

Holly followed McNair with 15 points, junior guard Ricardo Montereiro added 10, and freshman guard Hyseir Miller had eight points.

Martin Luther King is now 10-5 this season. The win against the Generals moved the Cougars to 4-1 in Public League ‘A’ division action. They haven’t lost a league game since a 57-40 defeat to Imhotep on Dec. 14, three games into the season. The Cougars are 10-2 since that game and get Imhotep at home for a rematch on Thursday.

“Everybody’s not trying to do too much and that’s why we’re doing pretty well right now,” Casimir said.


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