Sideline Cancer was the Cinderella team of TBT in 2019. If Marcus Keene’s offensive outburst on Sunday afternoon is any indication, another deep tournament run may be in the cards for 2020 as well.
Keene hit a 15-foot jumper to reach the Target Score and finished with a game-high 29 points as Sideline Cancer overcame a 12-point second-half deficit and defeated Team Hines, 93-91.
“We just had to figure each other out,” said Keene. “We knew the importance of each win (in TBT). We dug deep down inside and got the win.”
Keene went 12-for-22 from the field and added six rebounds and six assists in the win for Sideline Cancer, which advanced to the Wichita Regional championship last summer by defeating both Kansas and Wichita State alumni teams.
“We’ve been here before,” said Keene. “I felt like experience would come into play. We got stops, and we know how to play the Elam Ending. We knew [we couldn’t allow any] threes. We just had to get the ball back and see what happened.”
Brandon Paul (23 points, 13 rebounds) and Ethan Happ (20 points) paced the scoring load in the losing effort for Team Hines.
Sideline Cancer advances to face Challenge ALS on July 7th at 2:00 PM EST.