Brandywine basketball teams sweep Berrien Springs

Published 10:15 am Saturday, December 9, 2023

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NILES — The Brandywine girls and boys basketball teams took care of business against visiting Berrien Springs Friday night in Lakeland Conference play.

The girls rolled to a 57-17 victory while the boys won 59-48.

The girls made quick work of the Shamrocks, taking a 22-8 lead after one quarter of play and a 43-10 lead into halftime. Leading 11-7 in the first, the Bobcats ended the half on a 32-3 run to blow the game open.

Ellie Knapp led the team with 18 points and Miley Young and Adeline Gill scored 12 and 10 respectively. Zion Ellis led Berrien Springs with six points.

The Brandywine girls will travel to face Colon at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 13.

The boys game started with a bang. Berrien Springs’ JJ Frakes scored 15 points in the quarter, including a pair of highlight dunks and a 3-pointer to beat the buzzer, to give the Shamrocks a 17-9 lead. The Bobcats were able to respond and adapt to the Berrien Springs zone and outscored the Shamrocks 50-31 the rest of the way. Frakes scored just four more points the rest of the game to finish with 19.

“We know [Frakes] can shoot, he can play,” said Brandywine boys coach Nate Knapp. It was just one of those things where we want to try to limit what he can do. But when he went off and our kids, we were kind of little timid at first; I don’t know why because our guards love pressure love to go and attack but we weren’t attacking. The kids were just resilient tonight, they kept working, kept finding ways.

“This group man…They’ll find a way. They just move the ball around so quick, they’re probably the one of the toughest teams I’ve ever been able to watch and coach.”

Nylen Goins led all scorers with 22 points, which included five 3-pointers. Jeremiah Palmer scored 13 points, Byron Linley added 11 and Jamier Palmer 6.
The Bobcats hope to keep the momentum going into next week when they travel to face Rival Buchanan at 7: 15 p.m.

“There’s no easy game in our conference and it’s going to be like that every night,” Knapp said. But that’s what these kids want. They want to get tested, they want to get pushed. They work hard every day at practice. I’m lucky as heck to be coaching them.”