{"id":138275,"date":"2017-01-18T12:08:45","date_gmt":"2017-01-18T20:08:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bilcomprd.wpengine.com\/?p=138275"},"modified":"2020-11-15T13:57:32","modified_gmt":"2020-11-15T21:57:32","slug":"chris-lykes-brandon-slater-battle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ballislife.com\/chris-lykes-brandon-slater-battle\/","title":{"rendered":"Chris Lykes & Brandon Slater BATTLE in HYPE Catholic League Match-Up!"},"content":{"rendered":"
VIDEO SHOT BY: Andrew Canavos<\/a> \u201cHe\u2019s a big-time player,\u201d senior point guard Aaron Thompson said. \u201cI\u2019ve seen him grow so much since he was a freshman. It\u2019s his time now.\u201d<\/p>\n Slater can play big or small, and his 34 points, 10 rebounds and five assists led the No. 7 Panthers to an 83-73 victory over No. 1 Gonzaga on Monday in Fairfax.<\/p>\n First and foremost, Slater is an athlete who grew up with coaches telling him to handle the ball, attack the basket and learn to shoot jumpers.<\/p>\n When he grew into his height, the same coaches told him to get on the block and put his back to the basket.<\/p>\n Paul VI rebuffs all that. The Panthers simply push the ball and look for offense at NASCAR speed.<\/p>\n Yes, Gonzaga runs fast and doesn\u2019t use a true center either. But the Eagles were a step too slow to hang with Slater.<\/p>\n The Panthers (14-2, 7-1 Washington Catholic Athletic Conference) built a 21-point lead in the second quarter before a standing-room-only crowd on the back of consecutive Slater three-pointers. He hit four on the night.<\/p>\n Slater picked up his 10th rebound and 32nd, 33rd and 34th points in a traditional three-point play: He outmuscled a Gonzaga player for a missed free throw, pounded the ball on the floor with his right hand and scooped it up and threw in a flip shot all while a defender held his left and was called for a foul.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a fighter,\u201d said freshman guard Jeremy Roach, who finished with eight points and three assists. \u201cHe just loves the game.\u201d<\/p>\n Thompson added 13 points and seven assists.<\/p>\n Eddie Scott, a University of Pennsylvania commit, led Gonzaga (13-3, 6-1) with 15 points, and freshman Terrance Williams scored 14 off the bench. Senior guard Chris Lykes, who entered averaging 18.9 points, finished with 11.<\/p>\n \u201cEven though I play the five [center], it\u2019s not really the five,\u201d Slater said. \u201cWe\u2019re all guards. We\u2019re going to do what we\u2019re going to do.\u201d<\/p>\n Even the traditionally rough-and-tumble WCAC has yielded to gargantuan guards who swish 23-footers one possession, block a shot on defense and start the fast break without a care.<\/p>\n This is Paul VI\u2019s task for Slater: to run the offense at breakneck speed alongside Roach and Thompson.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have similar styles,\u201d Thompson said of the matchup with Gonzaga. \u201cWe had to be a little bit faster than them.\u201d<\/p>\n CONNECT WITH US! VIDEO SHOT BY: Andrew Canavos ARTICLE BY Jacob Bogage of The Washington Post The entire floor is Brandon… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":138276,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[85,6886,6298,38,4,23],"tags":[4965,7851,9752,9654,9640,9641,10994,9842,9844,10993],"featured":[],"class_list":["post-138275","post","type-post","status-publish","format-video","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hs-east","category-exclusive-videos","category-games","category-high-school","category-high-school-videos","category-video","tag-ball-is-life-east","tag-ballislife-east","tag-brandon-slater","tag-chris-lykes","tag-dc-basketball","tag-dmv-basketball","tag-dmv-catholic-league","tag-gonzaga-high-school","tag-new-chris-lykes","tag-paul-vi-catholic","post_format-post-format-video","has-post-video"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
\nARTICLE BY Jacob Bogage<\/a> of The Washington Post<\/a>
\nThe entire floor is Brandon Slater\u2019s stomping ground. If the 6-foot-6 junior is Paul VI\u2019s center, why does he also flip three-point goggles to his friends in the student section? If he is a giant guard, what\u2019s with the post moves and vicious rebounds?<\/p>\n
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