Photos Available @ John McKenna Photography

Litchfield's Mike Andrulis, top, puts the ball on the deck in Wednesday's Class S tournament loss to Capital Prep. Middle, Anthony Brown, left, drives to the bucket and Caleb Buck battles for a rebound. In the lower photo, Andrew Luzzi mixes it up.

With three quarters of uneven play in its rearview mirror, Litchfield High's boys basketball team looked all but dead in Wednesday's Class S tournament second-round game against Capital Prep-Hartford.
Even playing on their home court before a fired-up crowd didn't do much to awake the Cowboys. But everything changed in the fourth quarter ,and Litchfield nearly pulled off a stunning comeback against a quicker and more athletic team.
Behind the spirited play of senior Andrew Luzzi, the Cowboys erased an 11-point deficit and were down 52-50 after Luzzi converted a three-point play with 1:06 left. But those would be the last points the Cowboys would score. Capital Prep followed with three free throws to put the game away.
"We have a bunch of battlers and fought for 32 minutes, but came up a little short," Litchfield coach Jason Harlow said.
Luzzi scored 19 points in his final game, including eight during the fourth-quarter charge. Mike Andrulis added 12 points, Caleb Buck 11 and Anthony Brown, in his last game, eight.
Litchfield finished 17-6, the fifth time in Harlow's seven seasons it has won at least 17 games. Wednesday's loss extended the Cowboys' tournament losing streak to four games. Their last tournament win came in 2004-05.
To be fair to the Cowboys, they haven't received favorable draws in the tournament over the span. Capital Prep, 13-8 coming into the game, was another tough opening assignment in the tournament.
The Trailblazers feature Kahlil Dukes, a freshman guard who leads the state in scoring at 30 points a game. With a quick first step and an ability to stop-on-a-dime and shift direction with the ball, Dukes is virtually unstoppable.
Dukes scored 18 points in leading his team to a 31-21 halftime lead. Brown managed to hold Dukes to 10 points in the second half but Dukes made some big plays at the end to help seal the outcome.
"He's dynamite," Harlow said of Dukes. "He's as good as anyone we've seen this year."
Dukes and his teammates hurt the Cowboys early with their quickness and full-court pressure, making it tough for them to get into an offense.
"We knew what (Capital Prep) was going to do, but I think we were nervous," Harlow said. "A lot of it had to do with how quick they were."
Capital Prep did its best to blow the game by missing a lot of free throws down the stretch. The Cowboys, meanwhile, stayed in the game by going 19 for 27 on free throws.
Things began to get interesting with three minutes left to play and Capital Prep up 50-39. Luzzi scored and Andrulis followed with a hoop off a steal by Quinlan McCarthy. Andrulis was fouled on the play and sank the free throw to make it 50-44 with 2:57 left.
Luzzi converted another three-point play with 1:26 left and it was 50-47. After forcing a turnover, the Cowboys had a chance to tie but Andrulis's three-point attempt rimmed out and was rebounded by Capital Prep. Dukes made two free throws to put his team up 52-47 before Luzzi's aggressive drive to the hoop and free throw made it 52-50.
Trailing 53-50 after a Capital Prep free throw, the Cowboys had another chance to tie only to see a three-point try by Andrulis fall short. Two more free throws by Dukes put the game away.
Litchfield will lose Luzzi and Brown to graduation but will return Andrulis, Buck and McCarthy. All three will be seniors, as will Quinn McKenna, the starting point guard until he was sidelined for the season in February with a back injury.

Photos Available @ John McKenna Photography

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