By PAUL GOTHAM
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Nigel Scantlebury (Greece Athena) didn’t get the start Wednesday night. For the first time this season the Niagara County Community College sophomore came off the bench.
That this occurrence happened on the Thunderwolves’ only trip to Scantlebury’s hometown added a touch of irony.
Any chance that the instance affected Scantlebury’s play went unseen.
And that may be just one of the reasons why the former Athena star will get a chance to continue his academic and athletic careers at the Division I level.
Scantlebury entered the game with 12:27 to go in the first half. On his first touch of the basketball, he dropped off a pass to teammate David Petit-Home for a 3-pointer from the top of the arc.
First touch of the night for @_Nigel___ is an assist to David Petit-Home. Niagara County CC up 24-10 on @MCCTribunes pic.twitter.com/6IEYXxg0M0
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 29, 2020
His first shot was off the mark. Then, coming out of a timeout, he nailed a pull-up triple on a set play aptly called “Athena.”
First bucket of the night for @_Nigel___ comes out of a timeout on a set play called …. Athena. Niagara County CC leads @MCCTribunes 27-14 pic.twitter.com/hWIR52LDSp
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 29, 2020
“It’s a good play for me to get loose,” Scantlebury said crediting his head coach Bill Beilein. “He knew what he was doing when he called that play out. I got the screen and it felt good. I had to score on that.”
After giving up the ball originally, Scantlebury received it again near the top of the key. He used a ball screen to create space between himself and a defender before hitting a step-back triple.
“We run that Athena play to keep the ball in his hands,” Beilein explained. “We let him get it out of his hands really quick then we just want a surprise pick-and-roll at the end to help him get free.”
Four possessions later, he scored on a second-chance opportunity. Then he grabbed a rebound and went the length of the floor for two more. The 6-foot point guard capped Niagara County’s first-half scoring with a jumper in the lane.
Using the ball screen @_Nigel___ gets to the rim for 2 more. pic.twitter.com/11CMnExzOd
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 29, 2020
The Thunderwolves had a 43-33 lead at the break on the way to their fifth straight win, a 73-58 victory over Monroe Community College.
Scantlebury finished the game with 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting. Running the point he had just two assists (on at least a pair of occasions he set up teammates who went to the line for free throws).
Coast to coast for @_Nigel___ pic.twitter.com/zbPiGr5KDL
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 29, 2020
“He can score,” Beilein noted. “His deception with his passing and scoring ability is such a beautiful combination on the court.”
Despite having the ball on essentially every possession, he played without committing a turnover.
Pull-up jumper in the lane from @_Nigel___ Scantlebury has 9 at half. Niagara County CC leads @MCCTribunes 43-33 pic.twitter.com/LhOgABK6pw
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 29, 2020
“That’s what made us notice Nigel right away was the mistake-free basketball that he’s always played,” Beilein noted. “He’s always played with a heavy IQ. Head on a swivel, making good decisions type of kid. That’s just who he is.”
With the win, Niagara County (No. 13 NJCAA DII) improved to 19-3 overall and 3-0 in Region 3 action.
The Thunderwolves never trailed in the contest. Hunter Anderson connected from behind the arc on the game’s first possession. Brian Adams followed with an open-court layup.
Petit-Home drilled a triple on a baseline inbound play for Niagara County’s first double-digit lead of the game at 13-2. A Marcellus Cooper slam made it 18-8.
MCC cut the lead to six early in the second half. Niagara County responded with an 11-2 run. The Tribunes did not get within single digits for the remainder of the contest.
Petit-home led all scorers with 17. Anderson and William Kondrat had 10 apiece.
Keysean Faulkner-Smith paced Monroe with 13 points. Naeqwan Tomlin had 12.
Using the wing ball screen, @_Nigel___ gets his first bucket of the second half. 10:19 remaining Niagara County CC 58 @MCCTribunes 44 pic.twitter.com/YuOAOKW9Cl
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 30, 2020
A year ago, Scantlebury averaged six points per game, taking fewer than four shots per outing. Currently he leads Niagara County CC scoring 14.4 points per contest. Logging a team-high 32 minutes per game, he hits 50 percent from the floor and hands out 5.2 assists while committing 1.9 turnovers.
“Right now he’s a point guard getting that confidence to score,” Beilein stated. “He’s always scored and set guys up with great deception. Now he’s getting to the point where you can see him taking shots with a major amount of confidence that it’s coming off the hand and going in. That’s where we need him to be.”
Scantlebury’s efforts recently earned him a scholarship offer to continue his career at Central Connecticut State.
“It feels really good,” Scantlebury said of the opportunity. “A credit to my coach and the coaching staff, they helped me out for the past couple of years. All I did was put in the work, and somebody finally found me.
“It was a breath of fresh air, but I knew it was coming. I never heard of anybody who worked so hard and didn’t get what they deserved, so I felt like I deserved that. It was a credit to all the hard work my coach put into me. They believe in me and that’s all I need.”
Blessed to receive an offer from Central Connecticut State!!⚪️???? pic.twitter.com/A4aMwl41EG
— 1️⃣ (@_Nigel___) January 20, 2020
Central Connecticut State, coached by former NBA veteran and University of Connecticut standout Donyell Marshall, competes in the Northeast Conference.
“That’s the best part,” Beilein said of watching players move on to four-year schools. “Kids come to junior college to finish off their goals and reach some goals. They set missions when they were seven, eight years old to be scholarship guys. We’re just kinda that closing spot for them. We just want to fine tune some details that they didn’t have in high school.”
At Athena, Scantlebury twice earned All-Tournament team honors leading the Trojans to back-to-back Section V Class A1 finals appearances in 2017 and 2018.
“To me, his basketball IQ is very good, and it’s gotten better,” MCC head coach Jerry Burns said. “Moving on to the next level, you got to know how to play, and he does that really well. He plays hard. That’s always good, but his basketball IQ from where he was last year to where he is now you can definitely see an increase.”
He was also part of the 2015-16 Athena squad which advanced to the A1 finals. That team was led by current University of Vermont star Anthony Lamb.
“Right now, my goal is to enjoy my last year with my group of guys because they have watched me grow into a young man. I want to be the best player I can be for my coaches and teammates. They push me every day.”
As for not getting the start, Wednesday night?
“I was undisciplined with my time,” Scantlebury said. “I had a little attitude problem this past weekend. You know a lot of stress going on with school. I deserved to be benched, so I had to come on and be mature about it.”
“Right from the get go, Nigel Scantlebury has been about character,” Beilein stated. “He’s about work ethic. He’s about intensity-level. He’s about the competition. We just had a time-management issue. We don’t let stuff slide and that’s what we hold our guys accountable.”
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