Chills and thrills: Blazing start, defensive stranglehold catapult Blue Devils to victory in season opener

QUINCY — The lights go down, the flames go up and everyone in Blue Devil Gym awaiting the Devil’s arrival feels the chills.

The players aren’t immune to that, no matter how focused on the game they might be.

“I would think any abnormal person would say no they don’t feel anything,” said Tyler Sprick, a junior guard on the Quincy High School boys basketball team. “So, yeah, I definitely do get chills a little bit, but once you step out there, it kind of goes away.”

Yet, their energy never should, at least not as long as the Blue Devils pour effort into their defense the way they did Thursday night.

In the first 81 seconds against Dixon in the 51st QHS Thanksgiving Tournament, Quincy forced three turnovers, scored twice in transition and forced Dukes coach Chris Harmann — a former QHS player and assistant coach — to burn his first timeout in the Blue Devils’ 65-29 victory.

“It was important to see where we were at defensive-wise and how we would execute offensively,” junior swingman Camden Brown said. “It was the kind of start we needed.”

And the kind of start a large, passionate crowd appreciated.

“To have that extra factor that road teams don’t get is huge for us,” said Sprick, who drew three charges and scored 13 points off the bench. “The fans are getting into it. The Devil coming out in the beginning. It’s an experience unless you play Blue Devil basketball you don’t get.”

It can be daunting trying to combat that.

It took the Dukes eight minutes before they could.

The Blue Devils scored the game’s first four field goals, held the Dukes scoreless for nearly three minutes and led 21-8 at the end of the first quarter. Dixon committed six turnovers over the first eight minutes.

“They’re very long and athletic, and we don’t have the ability to simulate that,” Harmann said. “But when we see it, can we make the adjustments?”

The Dukes did for a period of the second quarter. 

Neither team scored for the first 2:15 of the quarter before Dixon’s Jathaniel St. Pier drove the middle of the lane for a layin. It jumpstarted a stretch in which the Dukes outscored the Blue Devils 10-3 to pull within 24-18 with 3:24 remaining before halftime.

“Our guys have played hard throughout the offseason and the preseason,” Harmann said. “We need consistency. It’s something we talk about all the time. There were definitely some things we’ll see on film we’ll be able to take away both ways — good and bad. That’s why we wanted to come down here.”

The Blue Devils used an 8-2 sprint to close the first half, going up 32-20 and setting the stage for a dominant second half.

“We took a little nap in the second quarter,” QHS coach Andy Douglas said. “Coming out the way we did in the second half was important, especially defensively. The defensive buy-in allows us to get stops and run in transition, which they love to do.”

Dixon didn’t score the first six minutes of the second half and trailed by 27 points before breaking through. By the end of the third quarter, Dixon trailed 55-24, invoking the running clock for the final eight minutes.

“When our guys turn up their energy and communication, like they did in the third quarter, it changes how we play,” Douglas said. “We were able to see a little bit of our potential there.”

The same can be said for Brown, who turned a steal into a dunk on Dixon’s third possession of the game and led the Blue Devils with 17 points. Bradley Longcor III had 14 points, and Isaiah Talton finished with 10 points off the bench.

Yet, the feeling was different for Brown. The 6-foot-5 junior missed all of last season with a knee injury and admitted to feeling a twinge of nerves being back in the lineup.

“Once I got that first dunk, they kind of all went away,” Brown said.

And he felt good.

“Very good actually,” Brown said. “Very, very good.”

As did the Blue Devils after setting the right tone for the season.

“It’s an emotional night, whether it’s your first night playing or you’ve been playing here for four years,” Douglas said. “Coming out to the crowd we had tonight, wow, that crowd was huge. So it’s emotional, but a great way to get started.”