Carmel surprises Bartlett

Carmel's boys basketball team did not at all resemble a team that had just 3 wins and 6 losses coming into Tuesday's action at the Hinkle Holiday Classic at Jacobs.

The Corsairs were hitting on all cylinders as they shot 30-of-54 (56 percent) from the field and turned ball over just 8 times in a convincing 85-79 win over Bartlett in third round pool play.

"That is the best we have looked all season by far," Carmel coach Zack Ryan said. "It just all seemed to come together for us. It helps when you are knocking down shots. That's a big win for us against a real good team. I couldn't be happier with the way we played."

The Corsairs had a balanced scoring attack with four players in double digits. Christopher Duff led the way with a game-high 23 points. Brian Julien added 22 while point guard Shareif Bailey recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 assists. Zavier Barnes chipped in 12 points off the bench.

"We played unselfish and were sharing the ball," Ryan said. "Shareif did a great job tonight of distributing. We were able to spread the floor and attack. That is when we are at our best."

Bailey helped set the tone early with 3 buckets in the first quarter as Carmel jumped out to a 20-11 lead. Bailey added a couple 3-pointers in the second quarter as the Corsairs extended the lead to 44-30 by halftime.

"We have had a tough start," Bailey said. "We lost a few tough close games, but we have stayed positive and today it all came together for us. We just kept pushing the ball up the floor and tried to get to the rim."

The Corsairs led by as many as 19 points in the second half. Julian scored 13 of his points after the break. Duff was consistent throughout with 11 in the first half and 12 in the second.

Bartlett (9-3) shot just 14-of-36 (38 percent) from the field through the first 3 quarters before making a fierce run in the final quarter. The Hawks buried six 3-pointers and exploded for 36 points in the fourth quarter, but it was too little too late.

"We came out flat," Bartlett coach Jim Wolfsmith said. "We did just about everything we could do wrong on defense. We didn't defend the perimeter. And we didn't stop them from taking the ball to the rim. We are better than that. We need to play better than that."

Ryan DiCanio had 19 points to lead the Hawks in scoring. Jordan Anderson and Tyler Pauletti each had 13 points.