What a difference a half makes as Hamzi Abdella, one of three Lincoln International players who arrived late due to a broken down team van scored 34 points to lead a second half comeback that resulted in a 84-79 win over the Groves Academy Eagles Thursday night in St. Louis Park.
The other two late arrivals for the Eagles were Ahmed Abdella and Abdullahi Abdi.
Since the three players were not present, head coach James Glewwe had to start three junior varsity players that temporarily left Lincoln International without a bench. The Griffins would start out on a 6-0 run until Ahmed Aidid put the Eagles on the scoreboard. Groves Academy would capitalize on the absence of the Lincoln International starters by storming to a 34-2 lead. Max Bilcik put on an offensive display early in the game by scoring on a left handed layup and a one handed jam. With a little over 11:00 to go in the first half, the Abdellas and Abdi arrived and their presence became a factor in reviving the Eagle offense which was dormant for the first seven minutes. The Griffins would get a three point play from Malik Bodden and the Eagles got a late 4-0 run as Groves Academy led at halftime 52-37.
It would take a while for any scoring to begin in the second half as Abdi would hit a three pointer 1:13 into the half. The Eagles offense began to heat up and the Griffins offense started to cool down as they couldn't make their shots and caused numerous turnovers. Hamzi Abdella would score five straight points and hit a pair of free throws to tie the game at 75. Lincoln International would surge into the lead on a basket from Abdiaziz Wais. Groves Academy had a chance to regain the lead but Bilcik' missed a three pointer. Shafici Omar would put the game away with a pair of free throws that would clinch the comeback.
Also scoring in double figures for the Eagles were Ahmed Abdella with 19 points. Abdi added 16 and Omar contributed 11. Bilcik led the Griffins with 29 points. He scored 20 in the first half. Bodden added 25 and Larry Mohamed scored 15.
Lincoln International improved their record to 2-4 and will host the Learning for Leadership Mustangs on Thursday, February 1 at 5:30 PM. Groves Academy fell to 5-6 and begins a two game road trip on Tuesday, January 16 with a 6 PM game at Nova Classical Academy in St. Paul.
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