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Carmel gets the message, tops Bradley Tech

Without calling anyone out by name, Carmel Catholic boys basketball coach Zack Ryan angrily challenged his seniors to take ownership of the team after a disappointing first quarter.

The ears of Tim Owens and Nate Reid perked.

"He was looking at me, so I knew what he was trying to get me to do," Owens said. "I just wanted to do everything that I could to help our team win this game."

Said fellow senior Reid: "I told Tim, 'Come on. Let's pick it up right now,' so we could get the whole team hyped up again and we could get back in the game."

Within the first half minute of the second quarter, Reid took a charge - and the Carmel charge had commenced.

Reid and Owens led a spirited second-quarter effort that helped send Carmel on its way to an 81-51 win over visiting Bradley Tech on Friday.

The 6-foot-2 Reid sank 2 of his three 3-pointers in the second quarter and finished with 13 points and 6 rebounds. The 6-5, 210-pound Owens posted his first double-double of the season with 10 points, including a one-handed dunk, and 11 rebounds.

Both Reid and Owens came off the bench. Their performances were especially needed by Carmel (6-6) after C.J. Duff picked up his third personal foul just 16 seconds into the second quarter. Duff sat out the rest of the half, before scoring 17 of his game-high 19 points after halftime.

"Getting contributions from Nate and Tim can totally change the dynamic of our team," Ryan said. "When C.J. went out, I was like, 'What are we going to do here? Should we slow it down?' Then we actually extended the lead. Tim stepped up. Nate stepped up. That's great to see."

Carmel trailed 21-13 after the visitors from Milwaukee closed the first quarter with a 15-2 run. When Owens exited the game late in the second quarter, after grabbing 6 rebounds, Ryan's demeanor had changed.

The coach was all smiles.

"I hugged Tim because I was so happy with how he played," Ryan said.

Sparked by Reid, Owens and Zavier Barnes, who scored 6 of his 10 points in the second quarter, Carmel took a 36-29 lead into halftime.

"It's been an ongoing experience of how we can maintain our intensity throughout an entire game," Ryan said. "Rather than us coaches yelling and screaming, I'm trying to put the onus on (the players) to figure out the problem."

Barnes put back his own miss, Shareif Bailey (8 points) scored on a drive and Brian Julien (8 points) completed a three-point play to put Carmel in front 30-26. Another putback by Barnes and 15-footer by Michael Pabst capped an 11-0 run.

"We were just running our secondary (offense) and our fast break," Owens said. "When we move fast, we tend to get teams off balance and not let them get into their defense. Once we do that, it's our game."

Carmel pulled away after halftime, outscoring Bradley Tech 18-9 in the third quarter and 27-13 in the fourth.

It marked the Corsairs' third win in their last four games. They've received a boost from Reid, who essentially lost his junior season to a leg injury. He had labrum surgery last April. The lengthy rehab process cost him nearly the first month of this season. At Jacobs' tournament, he scored 19 points in a double-overtime win over Prairie Ridge.

"It took me a little bit to get back," Reid said. "But I'm 100 percent now."

"He's a guy who can shoot and rebound," Ryan said. "Once he gets into better basketball shape, he's going to help even more. He's been playing for only two weeks, really."

An ankle injury recently sidelined Owens, who played his freshman and sophomores seasons in New York. He, too, can be a big factor for the Corsairs going forward, since they don't have another player of his size and athleticism.

"For Tim," Ryan said, "it's a matter of just him believing that he can do it."

  Carmel's Tim Owens, right, drives the lane on Bradley Tech's Domonique Smith on Friday in Mundelein. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Carmel's C.J. Duff, left, goes to the hoop on Bradley Tech's Justin Gilbert on Friday in Mundelein. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Carmel's Thomas McGrail looks to pass around Bradley Tech's Domonique Smith on Friday in Mundelein. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Carmel's Brian Julien, left, drives past Bradley Tech's Joe Bohannon on Friday in Mundelein. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
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