The Bruins must overcome the Trojans to advance past the sectional round.
The Rock Bridge boys’ basketball team will have to overcome two opponents when it plays Troy tonight — Trojan players and fans.
However, the Bruins don’t forsee this being a problem.
“We’re used to playing in noisy, hostile environments,” assistant coach Blair Scanlon said. “The crowd and the environment shouldn’t really bother us.”
The Bruins (25-1) will find out just how much such surroundings will affect them when they take on Troy (25-4) at 8:15 tonight at St. Francis-Borgia in a Class 5 sectional matchup.
Head coach Jim Scanlon said he has tried to keep the media away from his players leading up to gameday in order to cut down on distractions.
“The boys are relaxed and focused,” Jim Scanlon said. “We have been sharp in practice, very precise and crisp.”
After getting through an intense district tournament last week with wins over rivals Hickman and Jefferson City, Jim Scanlon said he feels the team is excited to play for a shot in the quarterfinals on Saturday night, where they would meet the winner of Glendale and Kickapoo. In order to get there, Jim Scanlon said the Bruins will have to step up their defense and rebounding.
“Troy shoots well,” he said. “We’re going to have to do a good job of tracking their shooters and try to get a hand in their face.”
Junior guard Richard Rose leads Troy in scoring with 16.2 points-per-game. Three other Trojans average double figures in scoring — senior forward Corey Wiemann (12.4), senior guard Adam Browett (10.9) and junior guard Kent Rau (10.0).
Blair Scanlon agreed with his dad, saying defense and rebounding are key if the Bruins expect to win.
“We need to be sure we stay together on defense,” he said. “That’s been one of our main focuses all season.”
Besides a stream of media, the Bruins also must deal with the expectation of being the favorite. They have won 23 straight, with their only loss coming just under three months ago, and are ranked No. 1 in Class 5. Although this expectation might rattle some players, Blair Scanlon said that is not the case.
“We’re used to being ranked first,” he said. “We’ve had that ranking for a while now, so there’s not really any pressure. These guys have played so much basketball, we just need to go out there and do what we do.”