“You have to outscore us,” Lazzor said after Long Reach took down Marriotts Ridge, 77-64, at home Friday to improve to 12-1. “There’s no way to stop all three. You have to just hope and pray.”
Barnes’s maturation has helped in that process, the coach explained. The guard/forward has improved at finding the open player when facing double teams, routinely finding knockdown shooters in Saunders and Nunez.
The trio’s excellence also gives each the comfort of knowing the other two will carry the offensive load if one has an off night. That knowledge became more secure after Friday’s win. Nunez scored just 10 points on a poor shooting night but Barnes scored 25 and Saunders added 20, including a key basket late.
The Lightning led throughout but the Mustangs (7-5) made a late charge, cutting their deficit to just five late in the fourth quarter. Saunders, defending guard Jack Bonner, knocked the ball free and sped downcourt.
A Mustangs’ defender all but climbed up Saunders’s back as he rose for the layup, but the senior guard finished through the flagrant foul to give Long Reach crucial cushion.
Close games have been the norm for the Lightning. Six of its first eight games were decided by single digits. Lazzor attributed that to players adjusting to larger roles; Long Reach graduated seven seniors from last year’s region finalist and has four new starters around Barnes.
Lazzor’s spirit matches his team’s high-powered offense. The coach constantly jokes in-game, Barnes noted, including ribbing a player who badly missed a reverse layup Friday by saying “don’t hit the lights next time.”
At one practice the day after a win, Long Reach went through part of practice before turning on music and playing a two-hand touch football game.
“It’s got to break the monotony. It’s just nonstop every day … I’m showing my appreciation to what they do in their effort and how hard they work every single day,” Lazzor said.
That dedication reflects the Lightning’s goals. The program hasn’t won a state title since 2006 and lost in the region finals last year to Wilde Lake.
Lazzor took over in 2016 and spent a few years building his program’s culture. But the year he considered a “turning point” got taken away due to the pandemic.
He’s got another potent squad now, one with the offensive ability to give opposing teams defensive questions that have no good answers.