Fearless Yellow Jackets in Final Four

Published 1:06 pm Thursday, February 23, 2012

Tyler Williams added 17 points, including a 13-of-16 performance from the free-throw line, and three steals in the victory.

Jamal McCrimon chipped in nine points and four rebounds. Anterio Rogers finished with two points and five boards.

Williams and McCrimon were each named to the Northeast Region all-tournament team.

After struggling in the opening 16 minutes, the Yellow Jackets shot 57 percent from the field in the second half to take down the Tornadoes.

Hadder said Vincent needed to take advantage of Williams’ penetrating ability, along with the driving ability of Moon and Rogers, to attack the basket and take away Holy Family’s size advantage underneath the basket.

“We flattened them out on the baseline and allowed Tyler to penetrate more,” Hadder said. “Our quickness can be a benefit for us.”

Vincent trailed throughout the opening half until an offensive rebound and putback by Moon gave the Yellow Jackets a 18-16 advantage in the final minute of the second quarter.

Vincent began the second half with a 9-2 run, capped with a layup by Rogers, to open up a 27-20 advantage with 3:19 remaining in the third quarter. The Yellow Jackets closed the quarter with another 6-2 run, capped with a layup by Moon with four seconds left in the period, to take a 33-26 lead into the fourth quarter.

Vincent extended its lead to double digits for the first time with 4:03 remaining in the game following a pair of free throws by Moon, which gave the Yellow Jackets a 41-30 lead.

Holy Family managed to cut the deficit to eight points late in the game but couldn’t get any closer.