Coe-Brown sophomore guard Grant Hayes said his life is all about consistency, referencing a quote from NBA player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, after pouring in 31-points against Oyster River in the playoffs.
The No. 8 seeded Bears (11-7) hosted a local rival, the No. 9 Oyster River Bobcats (10-8), in the Division II prelim round and came away with a 62-53 win.
Hayes, the team’s top scorer this season, found his spots and was happy to keep his team rolling in the postseason.
“They can’t guard me,” Hayes said post-game.
Coe-Brown’s late-season three-loss skid started with a brutal away loss to the Bobcats, 74-56, on Feb. 13. This was the Bears’ chance at revenge on home turf and to show that they have the stuff to make a deep run.
“It’s a little different playing at our house, The Bear Den, compared to Oyster River. I think we play better as a team at home,” Hayes added.
The Bear Den was indeed packed for the game. Bobcat fans showed up big, but the Coe-Brown band drowned them out on the far side. The Bears’ student section was filled top to bottom, with large cutouts of players’ faces being lifted among the sea of red.
Head Coach Dave Smith also credited the big crowd of students who showed up despite the Tuesday night snowstorm for pushing the team forward.
His team made the right adjustments after learning their lesson the last time. They attacked early, going up 16-5, and didn’t let the lead slip.
Their rebounding was stronger, they limited fouls and drove into the paint incessantly to get the win, Smith said.
Senior forward Carson Fowler tries to stop Oyster River junior Evan Clift from moving the ball up court quickly. Credit: ALEXANDER RAPP / Monitor 
Coe-Brown Coach Dave Smith calls out a play for his team to run, holding up five fingers. Credit: ALEXANDER RAPP / Monitor 
Bears sophomore Grant Hayes (L) drives into the paint against Bobcat junior Ryland Sweatt (R). Credit: ALEXANDER RAPP / Monitor
Turnovers, however, were an issue and the Bears almost let the Bobcats back into the game at the start of the second half. Ball security, Smith said, will be their biggest challenge against the undefeated No. 1 Hollis-Brookline Cavaliers (18-0) in the quarterfinals.
“We’ll have to be careful, and we’ll have to play defense for 32 minutes,” Smith said about how his team can keep on winning.
Overall, though, the Bears were feeling good with the win as they blasted the 1980’s classic “Lady in Red” by Chris de Burgh in the hallway after the game.
Besides Hayes’ big performance, junior center Colby Taylor cleaned up on the boards and was second in scoring with 13 points.
Sophomore guards Abel Szatko and Grady Mulligan also contributed with clutch buckets to keep the team ahead.
“I think we just had a lot of energy tonight. The crowd really helped, bench was in it,” Taylor said.
Coe-Brown will travel to Hollis-Brookline for a 6 p.m. tip-off on Friday.
The two teams didn’t face each other during the regular season, and Hayes likened the match-up to Kearsarge’s upset against undefeated Belmont in the D-III quarterfinal.
The Bears believe they can do the same.