Class 1A Boys Basketball Final: Country Day falls 48-39 in 1A finals; final thoughts
Final thoughts:
Looking through the boxscore, Eddie Ludwig took 15 free throws. Country Day had only 16. What does that tell you? The Cajuns were relying on Ludwig to get things done, and when he picked up his third foul midway through the second quarter, things changed.
The Cajuns didn't shoot very well, hitting only 14 shots all game. You're not going to win too many games shooting 30 percent from the field.
Country Day did well in every other aspect of the game, holding the Crusaders to 39.5 percent shooting, outrebounding them 33-31 and committing fewer turnovers.
But Country Day is young. Ludwig returns, after scoring 33 and 26, respectively, in the Top 28.
1A Final Final
Country Day, in the end, just doesn't have the athletes to contend with Christian Life. But this year the game at least was close. The Cajuns did better than a 28-point defeat, which is what Christian LIfe beat them by a year ago in the same game.
Eddie Ludwig had 26 points and 12 rebounds in the loss. Christian Life completed the 3-pete.
End 3rd Quarter
Ludwig picked up the pace early on offense, scoring 5 points to tied the game at 24, but with three fouls, he couldn't be aggressive on defense, and it showed. time and again Christian LIfe went inside and Ludwig couldn't do anything about it.
And because of that, the Crusaders went on a 13-3 run to lengthen their lead to 37-27.
End 2nd Quarter
Christian LIfe leads 24-19, and Country Day had a much better second quarter. Eddie Ludwig led the way early, getting to the free throw line three times in the first three minutes. But he picked up his third foul on a dubious charging call at the 4:50 mark. That's not good for the Cajuns.
Noel Keuboun is working hard for Country Day, but you can tell he's exhausted.
I'm not sure what Country Day needs to do here. I guess make shots would be part of the solution. In the first quarter, it went 3-of-11 and hit no 3-pointers. Christian Life, meanwhile, was 6-of-13 and 3 for 5 from beyond the arc.
That said, the Cajuns are still in this thing. A break here or there, and they could assume the lead sometime in the third.
Ludwig has only 8 points.
End 1st Quarter
This one looks like it's going to turn into a blowout. As WWL-TV sports ace Juan Kincaid said a second ago, Christian Life just is too athletic for the Cajuns.
So far, Ludwig has been shut down, getting off only four shots - he's 1 for 4 right now. This, less than a week after torching Arcadia for 33 points.He also has two fouls
He needs to become more involved if this thing is going to turn into the Cajuns' favor.
6:15 p.m.
We're in warmups now, and I've got say, watching Eddie Ludwig from Country Day is interesting. I don't pay attention often in warmups, but I caught a glimpse of him. He worked his way from the hoop to the free throw line to the 3-point.
I can't recall the last time I saw someone warm up free throws. There's a sign for ya. He expects to get to the charity stripe tonight, and likely a lot. This is why he's one of the top juniors in the state.
5:30 p.m.
Just a second ago, Country Day head coach Mike McGuire walked the floor - alone. I got the impression he was just trying to remain calm and keep some nervousness away from the team.
He was talking with me and Ed Daniels and other luminaries about some of the other games and his boy Eddie Ludwig. We're all in concert - Ludwig is a stud.
Posted by Bradley Handwerger 
at 5:30 PM | Permalink
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