Berg's heroics lift Rockets
Dan Berg didn't practice all week due to a sprained ankle and was doubtful for Burlington Central's Big Northern crossover game against Genoa-Kingston Friday.
By the second half, Berg's ankle wasn't bothering him. The senior sharpshooter made seven 3-pointers and scored all 23 of his points after intermission, leading the Rockets to an improbable 65-64 comeback victory in Burlington.
Berg's final 3-pointer, with 13 seconds left, was the game-winner. The Cogs had a final chance to win, but Nick Lopez missed 2 free throws with 2 seconds left.
"Every shot just felt right," said Berg. "I just wasn't getting the ball before. They were guarding me pretty well, playing tight D and I just couldn't get open. In the second half it opened up a lot."
"I think he just put (the ankle) out of his mind in the second half," said Central coach Chris Payne. "That was as good a shooting performance as I've seen."
The Rockets (2-2) trailed 54-42 with 6 minutes left, and were still behind 62-53 with just over 3 minutes remaining. But Berg and the Rockets' press wreaked havoc on the Cogs.
Berg nailed a long one to make it 62-56. After Scott Suchy scored Genoa's final points, Mike Doty came up with a steal and fed Mark Mastio for a 3.
The Rockets' withering pressure forced a travelling call and Berg hit another bomb to make it 64-62 with 35 seconds left. After the press forced a 10-second violation, Berg again found himself open and swished another 3-pointer from well behind the line to put the Rockets ahead for good.
Shane Larkin scored 18 points for Central while Matt McCurdy added 9.
"The key in the fourth quarter was that we finally defended and rebounded," said Payne. "We didn't do that the whole game. In the fourth quarter, (the Cogs) shot contested shots and we held them to one shot. I think that was the difference."
Genoa (3-5) still outrebounded the Rockets, 34-14, but the Rockets got the boards when they needed to.
Trevor Muench led 4 Genoal players in double figures with 16 points.
The first half was uneventful as the teams basically traded baskets. Genoa started to slowly pull away in the third quarter.
The Rockets did not make a free throw in the game, missing their only 2 attempts.