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Gladstone pulls away from scrappy Emeralds

GLADSTONE – At the beginning of the season, the Gladstone Braves were young and raw. On Tuesday night, they showed how much they’ve grown, capping the regular season with a 65-53 victory over Manistique.

The ever-poised Braves (11-9) made 23 of 24 free throws and pulled away down the stretch, fending off the high-octane Emeralds.

“We’re a solid free throw shooting team,” said Gladstone head coach Clayton Castor. “It’s a testament to these kids putting in the time during the offseason. We have a lot of kids that stay in the gym all summer.”

Manistique simply outhustled Gladstone early in the game as Darien Nichols and Tyler Tobin made their presence known with strong drives to the basket. The Braves were a step slow early, but gradually ratcheted up the intensity level, drawing within 16-15 at the end of the first quarter.

“Give a lot of credit to Manistique,” Castor said. “They came in hungry with a good game plan. They worked their elbows very well, and moved the ball well. They have some great athletes and they’re well coached.”

Gladstone took the lead to start the second quarter on two free throws from senior Phillip Griffith.

Going hard to the rim, Reece Castor and Joe Gibbs each drew fouls after the basket, and each completed the three-point play, back-to-back. Nichols answered back for Manistique with a couple buckets, but Gibbs staked the Braves back out in front with a triple from the top of the key for a 30-27 halftime lead.

“We didn’t make a whole lot of 3s tonight. There were a lot of in and outs, and missed layups,” Emeralds head coach Ed Marietti said. “We had an opportunity right at the start to have a six- or eight-point lead, which might have given them a little anxiety, even though it was early.”

Nolan Armock tore down the court on the opening tipoff of the second half to draw Manistique (7-12) back within 30-29, but the Braves answered right back with a Brad Spindler three-point play. Gladstone never trailed in the second half and was able to push the lead to 10 points in the fourth quarter.

Reece Castor dished out slick passes and went hard to the rim when the shot wasn’t there. He led the Braves with a game-high 24 points, and was a perfect 13 for 13 from the line, including 6 for 6 in the final minute. During one key stretch, Castor made both free throws, then ran down at the other end of the court and came up with a block, and was fouled again.

“They were shooting those last couple free throws, and I asked how many have they missed,” Marietti said. “I looked in the book and it showed that they made 23 in a row. It’s tough to come back when they make them like that.”

Mansitique wraps up its regular season Thursday at Gwinn.

Gladstone won the JV game 74-28.

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