A few halftime adjustments during Tuesday's game at Fallon made all the difference for the Senators' varsity boys basketball team.
Carson's full court press frustrated the Greenwave in the second half and easy baseline shots contributed to the Senators' 56-44 non league win.
Coach Bruce Barnes said his team's man-to-man defense wasn't working in the first half and sloppy ball handling kept Fallon in the game.
"We weren't sure what to expect coming into the game," said Barnes.
Once he discovered how to attack the Fallon offense, the Senators (1-4) went to work.
"We worked on putting the ball on the floor,' Barnes pointed out.
As a result of Carson increasing the game's tempo, the Senators attacked the baseline more for a half dozen easy shots and controlled the boards in taking the 12-point win.
"We're getting used to handling the press and speed of the game," explained Fallon coach Corey Williams, adding that his younger players are not used to attacking the traps.
Even more so, Williams was disappointed with the ease the Greenwave, now 0-5, gave the Senators the baseline.
Both teams were not playing at full strength. Barnes said the Senators were missing two injured guards while Fallon's Jeff Weed is recovering from an injury and another player was out because of illness. Barnes said the Senators took advantage of Fallon's inexperience at guard in working its pressure defense.
"We took advantage or that inexperience," he said.
Fallon trailed by two points at halftime, 17-15. One the third period began, the 'Wave tied the game and then took a 19-17 lead when a double-teamed Kevin Flores whipped the ball to Wes Smith. The Greenwave junior then took a shot from the left side of the key to give Fallon its first lead since the opening quarter.
Two Fallon turnovers then led to two Carson baskets, one on Kyle Bacon's fade away jumper and the other on a Jack Jacquet putback shot off a rebound. Fallon came back to trail by one point on two different occasions before taking its second lead of the half, 33-32, on Michael Evett's lay-up.
A 7-1 spurt gave Carson a 39-34 lead as Tony Fagan nailed a shot from the left corner and Brice Crook worked the baseline for an easy shot. Crooks, a 6-foot-3 sophomore, pumped in 10 points in the third quarter and finished the night with 22.
"He's hard charging," Barnes said of Crooks. "This is a guy who knows how to shoot, but he's also learning the other parts of the game."
Williams said Crook was tough and competitive.
"He took it to the hole," Williams added.
Going into the fourth quarter, Carson held a 42-34 advantage over Fallon and kept padding its lead.
Crooks and Steve Mandoki worked the inside, and Carson's defense caused Fallon to turn the ball over three consecutive times down the court.
David Hyde cut the lead to 52-44 with less than a minute remaining, but the Senators sunk 4-of-6 free throws to seal the win.
Each team had its first half woes, though, with ball handling and turnovers.
The Senators took an 8-6 first period lead, but each team scored nine points in the second quarter.
Bacon added nine points for the Senators while Adam Houghton and Jacquet each scored seven.
