Carlos Brown waited patiently on the Rock Bridge bench for all of the first half and most of the third quarter Tuesday night against Jefferson City.
With the Bruins struggling offensively, Brown entered and made an immediate impact to keep his team undefeated in Central Missouri Activities Conference play.
The senior forward scored 11 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter to lift Rock Bridge to a 60-50 victory and a regular-season sweep of the visiting Jays.
Brown converted a three-point play after pulling down an offensive rebound off a missed free throw to cut the Bruins’ deficit to 46-45 with just under four minutes left. His second three-point play tied it at 48 with 3:18 left.
“I knew my team needed a spark,” Brown said, “so when coach called my name, I was ready. I’m quick off the dribble, so I knew I could drive to the basket and see what I could do.”
Tempers then flared, as both head coaches were assessed technicals after they had to be separated from each other and fans were ejected. Once the officials handed out the discipline, the fire alarm sounded for several minutes.
But the stoppage of play didn’t slow Brown, who spun for a post bucket to give Rock Bridge its first lead of the game up 50-48 with three minutes left. The Bruins (9-6, 3-0 CMAC) scored the final eight points to salt the win.
The Bruins shot 76% (13-for-17) from the field and 79% (15-for-19) from the free-throw line in the second half. Rock Bridge trimmed its deficit to one (29-28) in the first five minutes of the second half thanks to a 12-5 run capped by the first of Brown’s five buckets.
Junior Hudson Dercher drained his second 3-pointer of the quarter and senior Xavier Sykes sank a pair of free throws to cut the Bruins’ deficit to 36-33 after three.
Jefferson City (7-12, 1-4 CMAC) twice extended its lead to seven early in the fourth quarter, but Rock Bridge finished the game on a 24-7 run. Half of Sykes’ game-high 18 points came from the free-throw line. Dercher posted 15 points and led the Bruins with seven rebounds, two assists and a game-high four steals.
Senior reserve Quinn Walker scored all of his 11 points in the first half to help Jefferson City to a 12-8 lead after the first quarter and 24-16 advantage at halftime. However, the Jays shot just 35% (17-for-49) from the field and 21% (4-for-19) from 3-point range for the game.
Fellow senior Sterling DeSha recorded a double-double with 13 points, 11 rebounds and three steals. Junior Michael Onunkwor added eight points and nine boards.
Rock Bridge 60, Jefferson City 50
JEFFERSON CITY (7-12, 1-4)
Aaron Stallings 2-6 0-0 5, Keith Driver 0-2 0-0 0, Koby Sands 1-1 0-0 3, Sterling DeSha 5-12 2-2 13, Quinn Walker 2-3 6-6 11, Steven Samuels 1-4 0-0 2, Kevion Pendleton 1-11 4-6 6, Michael Onunkwor 4-8 0-1 8, Parker Gourley 1-2 0-0 2, Cole Heller 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 17-49 12-15 50.
ROCK BRIDGE (9-6, 3-0)
Hudson Dercher 4-10 5-8 15, Xavier Sykes 4-6 9-12 18, Nate Norris 1-4 0-0 2, Mark Hajicek 1-1 0-1 3, John Powell 1-3 0-0 3, Ben Linnemeyer 0-3 0-0 0, Brady Bowers 0-0 0-0 0, Nick Arndt 1-2 0-0 2, Caden Sartain 0-0 0-0 0, Carlos Brown 5-5 3-4 13, Patterson Hibdon 0-1 0-0 0, Kanyon Hummel 2-7 0-2 4. Totals: 19-42 17-27 60.
Jefferson City 12 12 12 14 — 50
Rock Bridge 8 8 17 27 — 60
3s – Jefferson City 4-19 (Sands 1-1, Walker 1-3, Stallings 1-4, DeSha 1-4, Samuels 0-1, Driver 0-2, Pendleton 0-4), Rock Bridge 5-12 (Dercher 2-5, Sykes 1-1, Hajicek 1-1, Powell 1-2, Linnemeyer 0-3). Rebounds – Jefferson City 30 (DeSha 11), Rock Bridge 28 (Dercher 7). Assists – Jefferson City 9 (Pendelton 5), Rock Bridge 5 (Dercher 2). Steals – Jefferson City 7 (DeSha 3), Rock Bridge 7 (Dercher 4). Blocks – Jefferson City 1 (DeSha), Rock Bridge 1 (Norris). Turnovers – Jefferson City 12, Rock Bridge 9. Fouls – Jefferson City 22 (Onunkwor out), Rock Bridge 15.