The Atoms fell to 7-6 record on the season after a difficult loss to the Lake Braddock Bruins.

The team had been working hard all week to prepare for the Bruins. “We learned that they like to pressure the ball handler from the beginning of games,” junior Tyree Anderson said.

The Atoms started off strong jumping to an early lead and battled the Bruins to stay ahead ending the first quarter with a 22-13 lead.

The Atoms practice seemed to be working as the team was beating the Bruins pressure throughout the first. “We ran press drills, to practice beating the pressure by passing instead of dribbling out of it” Anderson said.

The Atoms lead was reduced to just three points by the end of the second quarter as the Bruins’ Corey Pelham hit a buzzer beating 3-pointer at the end of the second quarter. The Atoms went into halftime leading 35-32.

After two quarters the Atoms looked strong as the team took a commanding lead once again in the third quarter only to have their lead disappear as the Bruins took a 49-48 lead midway through the third quarter. “The team’s rebounding and defense could have been better,” senior Jordan Adams said.

The Atoms regained the lead minutes later with senior Chase Murphy stepping up and delivering  multiple consecutive jump shots. The Atoms held onto a narrow lead for the remainder of the third quarter, leading 58-55.

The Atoms continued to fight for the lead throughout the fourth quarter, but due to miscommunication on the court, the team was unable capitalize on multiple Lake Braddock miscues. The Bruins took back the lead during the fourth quarter and would never look back as  the Bruin lead expanded as time went on in the fourth quarter, ultimately resulting in  90-78 loss for the Atoms.

The Atoms will be looking to improve in the coming days before their next few games against conference rivals Mount Vernon,South County, and West Springfield. “We need to make less mental mistakes in the next few games in order to win,” Adams said.

The Atoms look see the return of senior Dontae Johnson who has recently reached a personal milestone of 1,000 total points on the Varsity team. The Atoms will be looking to improve their record and snap their current losing streak.