Tandem Friends plays fast. The Badgers move the ball quickly through the motion offense and press relentlessly on made baskets. It creates a frantic, nearly chaotic feeling when Tandem is on the floor, though the Badgers look perfectly at home.
“That’s something coach (Reggie Steppe) has been talking about since my freshman year,” said junior point guard Josh Connelly. “When we run it right, it’s really hard to stop us.”
It also gives Tandem’s opponents fits, like Quantico Friday night in the Delaney Athletic Conference semifinals as the Badgers rolled to a 64-50 victory over the Warriors.
A big reason Tandem can play at the speed it does is Connelly. The junior has been starting for Tandem since he was a freshman and even came up to varsity as an eighth grader, so he’s a seasoned veteran who makes the right choices nearly all the time. He kickstarted Tandem in the first quarter Friday with an array of drives and feeds, scoring nine points in the opening frame by getting to the rim and drawing fouls.
“In the Delaney conference, his statistics were 13 points, nine assists, eight steals and five rebounds (all per game),” said Tandem head coach Reggie Steppe. “He’s being more aggressive, he’s shooting the three — he does it all. He’s the engine.”
Two teammates Connelly found regularly were Colin Nail and Peter Cathcart. Cathcart is a solid shooter from beyond the arc and knocked down two 3-pointers in the first half against Quantico as the Badgers pulled out to a 37-24 lead at the break. He finished with 11 points on the night, including a five-for-six outing at the free throw line. Nail is a key part of the press for the Badgers and he’s a strong finisher around the basket. He logged nine points, with most of them coming off turnovers he created or in transition.
“We go to the rim and get to the line early and then later after we drive we can kick it out to the open 3-pointer” Connelly said. “When we get the inside game going it opens up our outside game.”
Mack Kennedy rounded out the bulk of the scoring for Tandem with an eight-point night that included a pair of 3-pointers. Tandem buried seven total long balls as a team.
The win sets Tandem up for a clash with Fredericksburg Academy in the DAC final Saturday in Warrenton.
