Quincy uses strong second half to beat Chaminade in Illinois-Missouri basketball showdown at Norm Stewart Classic
COLUMBIA, MISSOURI – Bradley Longcor III loves being back out on the court with his Quincy Blue Devils teammates.
It shows.
The standout junior guard missed time earlier this season with an injury but has worked his way back to 100 percent and back to being an impact player whenever he’s on the floor.
On Saturday night, Longcor was the best player on the floor in the final game of the three-day Norm Stewart Classic. He scored a game-high 22 points to lead Quincy to an impressive 62-54 victory over Chaminade at Mizzou Arena.
“I’d say he’s 100 percent back,” Blue Devils coach Andy Douglas said. “He gives us a calming effect out there. He wants the ball in his hands. He’s able to make plays. And he draws multiple defenders. When you do that, and you have weapons like we do around him, good things happen.”
Quincy (7-0), which also got 15 points from Keshaun Thomas, trailed by as many as eight points in the second quarter but took a 31-30 lead into halftime. The Blue Devils outscored Chaminade 12-10 in the third quarter and 19-14 in the fourth.
“This was a game that we circled on our calendar when we first found out we were playing,” Douglas said. “You knew you were going to face some tough competition. Chaminade is all of that and more. I think for our group to be able to come together like they did, wake up a little bit in the second half, and be able to pull it out was huge for us.”
Longcor said the victory showed his team’s toughness.
“I thought the first half we didn’t play as tough as we needed to be but within the second half I thought we did,” he said. “I think that’s going to carry on with the next few games we have coming up.”
The win also showed what was possible for the Blue Devils.
“It shows how good we can be,” Longcor said. “I think if we keep working at practice every day I think we’ll be one of the best teams in Illinois.”
Collin Perry led Chaminade (2-1) with 11 points and six rebounds, while Tricy Collins added 10 points.
Quincy (Ill.) - Chaminade boys basketball
Photo by Nate Latsch, SBLive Sports
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- Nate Latsch | latsch@scorebooklive.com | @SBLiveIL
