BRIDGING THE GAP: Hun School boys’ basketball player Desmond Cambridge goes up for a shot in a game earlier this winter. Last Sunday, post-graduate guard/forward Cambridge scored 12 points in a losing cause as Hun fell to Pope John. The Raiders, now 8-11, host the Phelps School (Pa) on February 2 and Linden on February 4 before playing at Life Center on February 7. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

When Desmond Cambridge joined the Hun School boys’ basketball team this winter, he was primed to be the go-to scorer for the squad.

But as the season has unfolded, Cambridge, a post-graduate guard/forward from Antioch, Tenn., has diversified his game, focusing on becoming more of a playmaker.

“At first I came to be a scorer, I have been a scorer all of my life,” said the 6’5, 175-pound Cambridge.

“But this team has more scorers than my school last year so I had to tone it down a little. I make sure that I get everyone touches and shots because everyone can go. When everyone on the team is going, it is easy for me to get shots and for the rest of the team to get them.”

Last Wednesday against visiting Peddie, Hun had trouble keeping the Falcons from getting good shots as it trailed 37-30 at halftime.

“We weren’t playing good defense at all they were breaking us down on all cylinders,” said Cambridge. “There were no box outs, no help sides. We just weren’t communicating.”

In the second half, Cambridge tried to spark a rally, scoring eight points on two 3-pointers and a thunderous dunk putback but Hun never got closer than seven as it fell 75-60.

“I just knew I had to make shots because we were down,” said Cambridge. “When the adrenaline kicks in, it comes out.”

While Cambridge saw progress in the second half, he was disappointed by Hun’s overall performance.

“It was better than the first half but it still wasn’t what we can do,” said Cambridge.

“We can play way better. Our captains really got into us at halftime. We have to slow down, run the plays, run the sets, and get open shots.”

In Cambridge’s view, the defeat could serve as a wake-up call for the Raiders.

“This is a minor setback; we will get in and watch film and see what we did wrong,” said Cambridge. “This is unacceptable; we are not used to this.”

Riding a four-game winning streak coming into the evening, Cambridge and his teammates were getting used to success.

“We know we are good players; we don’t just rely on one player to score all the points,” said Cambridge.

“We know that everyone can score and everyone can defend. We just have to believe in each other. In the past four games we have done that; we were clicking.”

Having committed to Brown where he will be playing for its men’s hoops program, Cambridge sees his post-grad year as a chance to mature on and off the court.

“It has been a pretty good transition because that was a private school that I came from so everything is basically the same,” said Cambridge.

“This is all preparation for college. I am playing as hard as I can getting ready, training, lifting, and getting ready for next fall.”

With the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) and state Prep A tournaments coming up in the next few weeks, Cambridge is hoping that Hun will take some lessons from the Peddie loss.

“Everyone has to buy into the system; we weren’t doing what we were supposed to do and what we drew up at the start of the game,” said Cambridge. “There were just mental lapses and we have to play tougher.”