Leesburg, Va. — The Loudoun County High School boys basketball team entered its season hoping to get its first win in the inaugural LoCoSports Tip-Off Tournament on December 5 in Leesburg. The Liberty Eagles, however, hoped to ride the momentum from their season-opening win against Brentsville and knock off the host Raiders.
In the end, the Raiders’ offensive firepower proved too much as Loudoun County dispatched Liberty, 61-22, to advance to the LoCoSports Tip-Off Tournament championship.
“I like our balanced attack. I like the fact that on any given night, guys can step up and make some shots,” Loudoun County head coach Mark Alexander said. “We’re deep on the bench, with guys who can come in a do some things for us, and hopefully that continues for us.”
[adrotate group=”5″]Loudoun County started off hot, jumping out to a 20-7 lead at the end of the first quarter and maintained their hold on the Eagles for the entire game. The Raiders played suffocating defense, holding the Eagles to less than 10 points in each quarter.
Another plus for the Raiders was their rebounding. Loudoun County dominated both sides of the glass all night, out rebounding Liberty, 41-21.
The Eagles had a tough night shooting – in part due to the Raiders’ stout defense – and Loudoun County took advantage of that by not allowing many second chance points. Liberty only managed six offensive rebounds, compared to the Raiders’ 16. Loudoun County senior forward Mark Siegel led the Raiders’ rebounding effort with 7 to go along with his 10 points.
“We didn’t [rebound well]in our first scrimmage, so it was a focus for us to rebound better and be tougher and be physical,” Alexander said. “I think that showed up for us tonight, so we want to keep that going.”
Loudoun County junior guard Augie Brody lead the Raiders’ scoring attack with 12 points in his first varsity start.
“My teammates got me in the right position and gave me the ball,” Brody said. “I was able to get to the rim and make some shots. Other than that, in the offseason, I just put in the work, every day, a couple hours a day, and it’s paying off and hopefully will continue to pay off the rest of the season.”
The Raiders expect Brody to help take some of the scoring load off of senior point guard Matt Anderson this season.
“He rebounds, he’s a tough kid, and he’s worked hard in the weight room,” Alexander said. “We love what he’s doing.”
The new-look Loudoun County offense certainly took a lot of the pressure off Anderson, who was able to orchestrate more than usual in his team’s season-opener.
“We have a lot of different assets that I can go to. Even if I’m not scoring, I know I got Mark Siegel coming up hard, Augie [Brody] coming up, big Nate Brown, our new big man,” Anderson said. “Coach Alexander is bringing in a lot of new plays for us that are really helping us execute our offense better.”
Anderson scored just three points in his season debut, but the senior looked as poised as ever, ready to contribute in any way his team needs this winter.
“Matt is comfortable just being the energy guy and distributing the ball,” Alexander said. “He doesn’t have to do it all. He will when it’s time, but there are some other guys that can play.”
Loudoun County’s win sends them to the LoCoSports Tip-Off tournament championship where the Raiders will host John Champe on December 6 at 7:45p.m. in Leesburg. Liberty will play Woodgrove in the third-place game at 6 p.m.
Mike Ferrara captured 120+ photos at the game…
Loudoun County Stats
| Loudoun County | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | Free Throws |
| Augie Brody | 12 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1-for-3 |
| Mark Siegel | 10 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0-for-0 |
| Caleb Rexroad | 9 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5-for-7 |
| Jared Briscoe | 7 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1-for-3 |
| Kiefer Cummings | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Luke Brenner | 4 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 4-for-4 |
| Brendan Boyers | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Nathan Brown | 3 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1-for-2 |
| Jason Green | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Matthew Anderson | 3 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1-for-1 |
| Raiders Totals | 61 | 41 | 8 | 21 | 3 | 13-for-20 |
Liberty Stats
| Liberty | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | Free Throws |
| Derrick Brooks | 12 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 6-for-10 |
| Jamano Gaskins | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0-for-0 |
| Brian Ryman | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Russell Morton | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0-for-1 |
| Bryan Barnes | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1-for-2 |
| Tre’Von White | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Dakota Lindsay | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Coy Shepard | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Eagles Totals | 22 | 21 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 7-for-13 |
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