Sandburg senior Malachi Perkins is a three-year starter at point guard.
He knows his objective each game, whether it’s to dish off to teammates and get the offense going or to do it himself and look for his own shot.
But at his baseline, it’s simpler.
Perkins wants to be a calming influence, a security blanket for the team.
Scoring six of his eight points down the stretch in the fourth quarter, Perkins helped Sandburg pull away for good in a 64-55 victory on Jan. 17 over host Bremen.
“As the point guard and captain, I want to settle my team down,” Perkins said. “The game was getting a little fast-paced. I knew we had the lead. We had to slow down, be smart and make smart decisions with the ball.”
Senior Will Johnson led the Eagles (11-8) with 24 points, six rebounds and three steals.
Juniors Bryson Dagon (nine points, six rebounds, two steals) and Daniel Morakinyo (seven points) also turned in key performances.
Sandburg led 45-43 through three quarters.
Perkins opened the fourth with a runner in the lane, a little friendly roll extending the lead to four and helping set the tone. The 5-10 guard added another floater in the paint with two-plus minutes to go and swished two free throws late.
Looking for the assist or for his own shot, he’s good with whatever needs to be done.
“It’s always a good feeling to help the team,” Perkins said. “We all know anyone can score on a given day. We all have that trust in each other to do their job. I’m not necessarily looking to score, but if I have the opportunity I’ll go.”
Perkins was also a standout cornerback on the football team this fall as Sandburg went 7-3. He was named to the All-Southwest Valley Blue second team.
That football mindset came to play with a physical jump ball in the final minute. Holding onto the ball, Perkins was thrown to the ground by a Bremen player.
Sandburg was awarded possession on the jump ball.
“More like football maybe,” Perkins said with a laugh. “You quickly forget about it, get the ball and keep working.”
Perkins is a team captain along with twins Will and Jonah Johnson (five points, five rebounds).
Coach John Daniels said it’s huge to have such an experienced point guard leading the way.
“Malachi knows what I want as a coach,” Daniels said. “He has the ability to probably score more. He’s our quarterback. He does a great job. In that situation, he knew we had the jump ball. Having a veteran senior, it’s a luxury for sure.”
Perkins is open to playing football or basketball in college.
Sandburg outscored Bremen 19-12 in the fourth quarter.
The Eagles’ bench scored 21 points, including key efforts from Dagon, Morakinyo and fellow juniors Jake Tomczak (four points, four rebounds) and Kendall McDowell (two points, five rebounds).
“Our junior bench, we’ve played together for a while,” Dagon said. “We came out wanting to get in their face, have energy and play hard defense. We want to show we’re worthy (as a bench) of starting.”
Dagon hit a timely 3-pointer and hit two free throws in the fourth.
Sandburg had lost five of six games coming into the Bremen matchup.
“We’re looking to get the spark going, get this win and keep winning,” Dagon said. “We’re looking to play team basketball. Will can score most of our points, but we’ve got guys who can score.”