By: Colin Schofield
As Blue Magic prepared to take on TBB for the 20th annual Danny Rumph Classic Championship Monday night, fans were ready for a showstopper. Blue Magic had talent all around the court, featuring NBA veteran Archie Goodwin, former five-star recruit Trevon Duval and “Mr. 52” Jordan Hall.
However, an unfamiliar face was the biggest factor for Blue Magic in the first half.
Ed Croswell had catapulted Blue Magic to a double-digit halftime lead with strong play on both ends of the court. As the first 20 minutes of action finished, Croswell had a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.
Croswell added four points and two rebounds in the second half as Archie Goodwin took command with 21 points. Despite a lower statistical output, his first-half contributions and overall defense effort were crucial to the Blue Magic’s 93-89 championship win.
“When I saw my shot wasn’t falling, I was just like, let me just go back to strong at and what I do,” Croswell said. “Crash the glass, be dominant and overpower my mismatches.”
Blue Magic and TBB were locked in a tight battle early, but Blue Magic started to take control midway through the first half. One of the catalysts was Croswell, who displayed his repertoire on both ends.
Croswell was a force in the paint in the first half. He disrupted every drive TBB made at the rim and was snatching rebounds left and right. That strong play eventually translated into offense.
The former Providence big man got an and-one layup and converted the free throw to give Blue Magic its first double-digit lead of the game with seven minutes left in the first half. A couple of possessions later, Croswell converted another and-one layup as Blue Magic started to separate itself from TBB.
Blue Magic entered the half in complete control, holding an 11-point lead behind Croswell’s double-double. Croswell had another layup early in the second half that put Blue Magic up 19 and forced a TBB timeout.
TBB made things interesting down the stretch, getting within one possession of Blue Magic, but never took the lead and Croswell and his teammates were crowned champions. Croswell finished with a final line of 14 points and 12 rebounds as Blue Magic capped off an undefeated tournament.
“I feel like we knew who each other were and we knew our roles,” Croswell said. “We knew we what we were gonna do. We know who to get the ball to. We just played together and had fun.”
Croswell finished the tournament averaging 12 points and seven rebounds for the champions. While his impact may have been overshadowed by the likes of Hall and Goodwin, he was crucial to Blue Magic’s success and can now call himself a Rumph champion in his second year playing.
“[The Rumph] was a big part of the summer,” Croswell said. “We’ve got bragging rights for next summer. Watching this tournament growing up, I wanted to be a part of it, so it’s a big deal for me [to win the championship].