Brown’s monster game carries Warren JFK past Hubbard 57-48

By Chuck Housteau

WARREN — Warren JFK High’s Nick Brown knows he’s expected to carry a heavy load as the leader of the boys basketball team.

The 6-foot-7 senior did exactly that and more as he had outstanding night to lead the Eagles (7-3) to a 57-48 non-conference win over Hubbard.

Brown scored 31 points, grabbed 22 rebounds, blocked four shots and handed out four assists as Warren JFK jumped out to a 33-14 halftime lead and then held off a late Hubbard surge to stave off the Eagles.

“I took the role of leader last year and the team expects me to play well and I expect to play well,” said Brown who is the only senior in the starting lineup along with three sophomores and a junior.

Brown led JFK right from the start as he scored 12 points in the first quarter as Warren JFK opened up an 18-10 lead.

“Brown’s been a scoring threat the last two years,” Warren JFK coach Bruce Timko said. “We did a good job of passing the ball to him. Our guards did a good job of getting the ball to him in positions for him to score.

“Tonight, Nick played big, meaning he got a lot of rebounds and put-backs,” Timko said. “He’s a tough matchup for any team because of his versatility.”

Brown is not only a threat to score inside but he is a good 3-point shooter and can pass the ball off when he gets double teamed.

“We knew Brown was a good player,” Hubbard coach Rick Fox said. “He has a nice shot but we figured we would be all right with that. He just didn’t miss many shots.

“You’re going to have that some nights.”

Brown stayed hot in the second period as Warren JFK simply dominated, especially on defense.

Brown scored eight more points which was two more than the entire Hubbard team scored in the second quarter.

“The kids did a great job playing defense tonight,” Timko said. “That was the key to the game.”

Although Hubbard trailed by nearly 20 points, they made a charge in the third quarter to get back in the game.

The Eagles made a 17-4 run in the period to get to within six points, 37-31 with 2 minutes left in the quarter.

Bobby Thompson led the rally with eight points in the period and Sam Bellino added six points.

“We were down bad and couldn’t hit any shots in the first half and we told the kids they just had to bear down and play hard,” Fox said. “The trouble is you play and fight your way back and then you get tired near the end.

“That’s what happened.”

Warren JFK’s young players regrouped from the Hubbard pressure defense and settled down in the fourth period.

With Hubbard hounding Brown, Warren JFK’s other players hit some big shots down the stretch.

Mike Fredricka hit a big 3-point shot to push the lead out to 48-40 while Boo Timko, Carl Broadbent and Brown made some clutch free throws down the stretch.

“We knew Hubbard would make a run at us,” Bruce Timko said. “We were just trying to hold down the fort until we settled down. Hubbard has some great athletes and we knew we would be in for a fight.”

The Eagles (8-4) were led by Thompson who had 14 points, while Bellino chipped in with 12 and Kurtis Drummond added 11 points.

Timko scored eight points for Warren JFK.