PALM BEACH, Florida – The Lee men's basketball team opened the 2021-22 season with a hard-fought, 81-78 road victory over Palm Beach Atlantic on Friday evening.
Quay Kennedy calmly stepped up with seven seconds left and drained two free throws to secure the season opening victory for the Flames. The defending GSC Player of the Year finished with 11 points, three rebounds and three blocks.
The Flames withstood a fast 11-4 start by the Sailfish. Palm Beach extended the lead to nine at 28-19 with 6:34 to play in the half before Lee settled in and finished the half on a 22-8 run to take a 41-36 lead into the intermission.
The second half was a back-and-forth battle until the very end. The Sailfish regained the lead, 66-65 with 6:33 left on a pair of foul shots by Aleksa Rakic. From there though the Flames took control with a 13-4. Palm Beach Atlantic had one more run in them and cut things down two on a jumper by Marcus Montalvo before Kennedy sealed the win with the late free throws.
"I thought we had to battle and did so in key moments down the stretch. We didn't shoot the ball extremely well tonight and it's always a good sign to that you can win a game when shots don't fall," said Lee head coach Bubba Smith.
Michael McGuirk led the Flames with 14 points and seven rebounds. Beyuan Hendricks and Jayce Willingham both posted 10 points each. Noah Boler (14 points) and Jalen Page (11 points) delivered off the bench for Coach Smith.
The Flames shot 48.4 percent (30 of 62) from the field. Lee converted just 4 of 18 (22 percent) from beyond the arc and 17 of 27 (63 percent) from the foul line.
Lee faced a familiar foe on the other side as former player and longtime assistant coach, Cole Rose. "It's always good to get that first game and win behind you, especially a road win. PBA played extremely hard and their well-coached. The best part about that game is that it's behind us. It's never fun competing against a good friend in Cole Rose," said Smith. "His kids played hard and there's always a ton of energy and momentum when a new coach takes over and starts their season."
Jalen Cooper led Palm Beach Atlantic with 16 points on 7 of 10 shooting and grabbed six rebounds. Will Lee posted 14 points, eight assists and four rebounds. Jules Jasmin tallied 14 and Alexander Gorton gave coach Rose four players in double-figures with 12 points.
The Flames (1-0) will wrap up the opening weekend with another tough challenge against Embry-Riddle at 2 p.m. Palm Beach Atlantic (0-1) will host West Georgia to close out the Crossover Tournament at 4 p.m.
"We will have to get ready for a quick turnaround and play a really talented Embry-Riddle team tomorrow," added Smith. "They're an NCAA tourney team from what I've seen in their first 3 games. They are good at every position and don't have many weaknesses. We will have to played better tomorrow to win, but our guys will be ready for the challenge."
