This was a badly needed win against a very good team! And the best part is that it was far from our best night offensively. Our man-to-man defense is steadily improving and some guys are starting to anticipate and do some things we haven't seen them do up to this point which is encouraging. We were able to force 19 IVC turnovers. There is still room for improvement on both ends of the floor. I also thought we received some strong play from our bench. It was great to see Joe Linton get out there and play well for us. He has worked extremely hard and it was tough to see him lose 2/3 of the season to that shoulder injury. After shaking up the starting lineup, Shay Brown played well off of the bench for us as well.
Our FT shooting once again was shaky at best. We finished strong in the OT, but were just 29-44 for the night. We had talked about the fact that we could score in the paint on IVC and finished with 38 points in the paint plus the 29 FT's on the night. I also thought we got out and ran our break better. That's something we've been placing a strong emphasis on lately.
Tevin Rumley had a big night scoring 25 points and snagging 13 rebounds. He took over the game late on the offensive end, especially after Jake Junis fouled out late in the 4th. Junis also had a big night prior to fouling out. He scored 19 and grabbed 9 rebounds to go along with 4 assists. Matt Lauts added 9 and Joe Linton 8 for the Rockets.
I thought we showed a lot of character in this game. It would have been easy once Junis fouled out to throw in the towel and just assume it wasn't our night once again! But finally I thought we showed the mental toughness I've been waiting for and found a way to win! We had talked earlier in the week about the post-season and how teams that go deep usually have to pull out a win when one of their better players has foul trouble or goes down with an injury. It was kind of ironic how that happened right after we had talked about it.
We are in a good place right now with a lot of depth and competition for playing time. It's a good thing for a coach to have tough decisions to make when it comes to the starting line-up and playing time.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Rock Falls 59 Rockford Lutheran 49
All in all a pretty sloppy and poorly played game on our part, but a win is a win! I expected a bit of a letdown in the non-conference game following a big conference game. We had plenty of opportunities to put Lutheran away, but to their credit they kept hanging around.
Jake Junis led us with 20 points and 4 assists. Tevin Rumley and Dylan Austin both added 11 points. Matt Lauts contributed 10 points and 7 rebounds.
Jake Junis led us with 20 points and 4 assists. Tevin Rumley and Dylan Austin both added 11 points. Matt Lauts contributed 10 points and 7 rebounds.
Princeton 63 Rock Falls 60
This was a heartbreaking loss as I thought we deserved to win against the #9 ranked team in 2A. We have to finish better in the fourth quarter and most importantly, make our FT's down the stretch. We were 1 of 5 from the FT line in the 4th quarter including missing the front end of two bonus situations. Basically we were 1 of 7 if you factor that in! That left the door open for Princeton and they took advantage of it.
I was pleased with many things we did in this game. First of all, we out-rebounded a very good rebounding team 24 to 20. The first time around Princeton out-rebounded us by 18! We also had a season low 10 turnovers.
We have to take better shots in the 4th quarter also. We took alot of shots in the paint that were pretty tightly contested and difficult shots to make. We have to pass on these shots and continue to run clock in the 4th quarter with the lead, make them come out and foul us and then be mentally tough enough to step up and knock down those FT's.
Jake Junis led us with 19 points. Dylan Austin added 17 points. Tevin Rumley finished with 14 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists.
I was pleased with many things we did in this game. First of all, we out-rebounded a very good rebounding team 24 to 20. The first time around Princeton out-rebounded us by 18! We also had a season low 10 turnovers.
We have to take better shots in the 4th quarter also. We took alot of shots in the paint that were pretty tightly contested and difficult shots to make. We have to pass on these shots and continue to run clock in the 4th quarter with the lead, make them come out and foul us and then be mentally tough enough to step up and knock down those FT's.
Jake Junis led us with 19 points. Dylan Austin added 17 points. Tevin Rumley finished with 14 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Kewanee 61 Rock Falls 59
We found a way to blow a 12 point 4th quarter lead. Just a few fourth quarter stats include: 10 turnovers (15 for the game), 4-9 from the FT line, and we fouled a three-point shooter not once, but twice! One of our missed FT's was the front end of a one-and-one. We also took some ill-advised shots late in the game. All of that was disastrous for us. On top of all of that, we didn't defend well in the 2nd or the 4th quarters, giving up 22 points in each. We lost guys repeatedly that we had clearly marked in the scouting report as guys we could not leave open.
I did think we did a nice job containing Matt Carlson, who I think is the best point guard in the conference. We held him to 8 points, unfortunately 2 of those came on his game winning tip-in at the buzzer.
We did out-rebound them 31-25 on the night, but allowed 13 offensive rebounds to Kewanee. This has been a concern since day one this season. There are nights where we have rebounded well, but it has been too inconsistent. Friday will be a huge test against a very long and athletic Princeton team that out-rebounded us by 18 at their place.
Offensively I thought we played well up until the 4th quarter. We are starting to make some very good reads in our offense and we are passing the ball well. I would like to see our leaders step up and demand the ball late in the game and make better decisions with the ball. Obviously we need to make FT's and I also think that is a mental toughness thing.
Matt Lauts continues to improve for us. He had 12 points and 12 rebounds on the night. We were led by Rumley who had 18 and Junis who had 17 points on the night. Each had 3 assists and 4 rebounds also. J.C. McNinch gave us some very good energy off of the bench and grabbed 4 rebounds also.
We will need to play very well this weekend to get a couple of wins. We host Princeton on Friday and Rockford Lutheran on Saturday.
I did think we did a nice job containing Matt Carlson, who I think is the best point guard in the conference. We held him to 8 points, unfortunately 2 of those came on his game winning tip-in at the buzzer.
We did out-rebound them 31-25 on the night, but allowed 13 offensive rebounds to Kewanee. This has been a concern since day one this season. There are nights where we have rebounded well, but it has been too inconsistent. Friday will be a huge test against a very long and athletic Princeton team that out-rebounded us by 18 at their place.
Offensively I thought we played well up until the 4th quarter. We are starting to make some very good reads in our offense and we are passing the ball well. I would like to see our leaders step up and demand the ball late in the game and make better decisions with the ball. Obviously we need to make FT's and I also think that is a mental toughness thing.
Matt Lauts continues to improve for us. He had 12 points and 12 rebounds on the night. We were led by Rumley who had 18 and Junis who had 17 points on the night. Each had 3 assists and 4 rebounds also. J.C. McNinch gave us some very good energy off of the bench and grabbed 4 rebounds also.
We will need to play very well this weekend to get a couple of wins. We host Princeton on Friday and Rockford Lutheran on Saturday.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Most Decade Wins in Illinois
From the January 19th issue of the City Suburban Hoops Report-
Most Decade Wins:
Records are from 1999-2000 thru the 2008-09 seasons and include only schools throughout the state that have been predominantly Class AA (3A/4A). Here is a look at the 10 schools with the most victories in the decade:
1. Simeon 251-65
2. Zion-Benton 250-63
3. West Aurora 246-53
4. Hillcrest 245-48
5. Lincoln 242-78
6. Rockford Boylan 238-66
7. ROCK FALLS 235-71
8. Curie 233-68
9. Nequa Valley 226-74
10. North Lawndale 224-60 (only 9 seasons added-school opened in 2000-01)
For more information on subscribing to the Hoops Report, call Joe Henricksen at (630) 408-6709 or email hoopsreport@yahoo.com.
Most Decade Wins:
Records are from 1999-2000 thru the 2008-09 seasons and include only schools throughout the state that have been predominantly Class AA (3A/4A). Here is a look at the 10 schools with the most victories in the decade:
1. Simeon 251-65
2. Zion-Benton 250-63
3. West Aurora 246-53
4. Hillcrest 245-48
5. Lincoln 242-78
6. Rockford Boylan 238-66
7. ROCK FALLS 235-71
8. Curie 233-68
9. Nequa Valley 226-74
10. North Lawndale 224-60 (only 9 seasons added-school opened in 2000-01)
For more information on subscribing to the Hoops Report, call Joe Henricksen at (630) 408-6709 or email hoopsreport@yahoo.com.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Rock Falls 70 Providence Catholic 69
Dylan Austin came up big in the second half. He was near perfect from the field for the game, missing just one FG attempt, including the game winning three-pointer off an assist from Jake Junis with :07 remaining. Jake Junis led us with 26 points and 11 rebounds. It was great to see him bounce back after a rough stretch. Dylan Austin finished with 18 points on 7 for 8 shooting from the field. Matt Lauts had a nice game also kicking in 18 points. Matt finished the weekend 10 of 10 from the FT line.
There were a lot of good things that happened in this one. The one negative is that we shot 64% from the field (including 7-11 from 3 point range) and struggled to win. Providence shot well (51%), but we defended poorly and compunded that with a lot of bad fouls around the basket. Providence shot 27 FT's, most coming in the second half. I thought we did a nice job of speeding the game up to our liking in the second half. We got them to turn the ball over more and rush some shots. We jumped out early in the second half, but followed that up with huge mental breakdowns that led to a 15-1 run for Providence to close the third quarter. That absolutely cannot happen again! Poor defense, poor decision making, dumb fouls and bad turnovers all occurred during this 4 minute stretch. The worst part was we had no leadership on the court, no calming influence to help stop the bleeding.
However, that changed in the 4th quarter. After falling behind 10 with 6:00 to play, I thought we showed a lot of discipline and played smart basketball. We didn't rush offensively or force bad shots. We attacked the basket. We played more disciplined on defense and forced a couple turnovers and some misses. We capitalized on every opportunity in the fourth quarter and did not turn the ball over once. I was proud of the finish and the maturity we showed to bounce back from a horrendous stretch of basketball. We did talk a lot about the fact that we cannot let those mental breakdowns continue for that long. They do happen in a game, but good teams minimize that run and answer it immediately.
Jake Junis led us with a +34 performance rating. Matt Lauts was +18 and Dylan Austin +16. As a team we were +74 for the game. Tevin Rumley led us with 7 assists and Shay Brown had 3 steals. We did take two charges (McNinch and Junis) which is another thing we have talked at great lengths about doing.
We have won six out of seven with four home games in a row coming. None will be easy. Kewanee knocked off IVC last Friday night by a point. The following weekend we host Princeton and Rockford Lutheran. We then host IVC the weekend after that. All will be good tests for us!
There were a lot of good things that happened in this one. The one negative is that we shot 64% from the field (including 7-11 from 3 point range) and struggled to win. Providence shot well (51%), but we defended poorly and compunded that with a lot of bad fouls around the basket. Providence shot 27 FT's, most coming in the second half. I thought we did a nice job of speeding the game up to our liking in the second half. We got them to turn the ball over more and rush some shots. We jumped out early in the second half, but followed that up with huge mental breakdowns that led to a 15-1 run for Providence to close the third quarter. That absolutely cannot happen again! Poor defense, poor decision making, dumb fouls and bad turnovers all occurred during this 4 minute stretch. The worst part was we had no leadership on the court, no calming influence to help stop the bleeding.
However, that changed in the 4th quarter. After falling behind 10 with 6:00 to play, I thought we showed a lot of discipline and played smart basketball. We didn't rush offensively or force bad shots. We attacked the basket. We played more disciplined on defense and forced a couple turnovers and some misses. We capitalized on every opportunity in the fourth quarter and did not turn the ball over once. I was proud of the finish and the maturity we showed to bounce back from a horrendous stretch of basketball. We did talk a lot about the fact that we cannot let those mental breakdowns continue for that long. They do happen in a game, but good teams minimize that run and answer it immediately.
Jake Junis led us with a +34 performance rating. Matt Lauts was +18 and Dylan Austin +16. As a team we were +74 for the game. Tevin Rumley led us with 7 assists and Shay Brown had 3 steals. We did take two charges (McNinch and Junis) which is another thing we have talked at great lengths about doing.
We have won six out of seven with four home games in a row coming. None will be easy. Kewanee knocked off IVC last Friday night by a point. The following weekend we host Princeton and Rockford Lutheran. We then host IVC the weekend after that. All will be good tests for us!
Rock Falls 63 Hall 47
This game was a struggle for us throughout even though the final may not indicate it. We did a very poor job making adjustments defensively on the night. We kept pinching the high post really hard even though Hall wasn't using the high post. Then when they skipped the ball over to shooters on the weak side we were a step slow closing out every time. Give Hall credit, they knocked down shot after shot, finishing 6 of 11 from 3-Point range. We talked about cheating out on the perimeter until they started using the high post at half-time and then several times throughout the second half. It's frustrating when we have to repeat simple requests over and over again.
Tevin Rumley had a great night for us finishing with 21 points, 10 rebounds and 3 assists. His performance rating was a +22 on the night (we were +60 as a team). Shay Brown finished with a +16 performance rating on the night. He had 6 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals,2 assists and no turnovers. Dylan Austin had 13 points, Matt Lauts added 12 and Jake Junis added 11. We had assists on 16 of our 27 FG which is just short of our 60% goal (59.3%). Gordo Barron led us with 4 assists. Gordo and Shay Brown each had 3 steals.
We shot 74% from 2-Point Range (25 of 34) but just 18% from 3-Point range (2-11). If we are shooting that high of a percentage we are getting shots in the paint and really shouldn't be shooting 11 three's... we just didn't need them. Combine that with 16 turnovers and you see why we had a tough time putting Hall away. I do think our depth wore them down a bit down the stretch. I guess we can't complain too much about a 16 point road win in the conference. One thing that is really important right now is keeping Jake Junis out of foul trouble. That has happened way too much this season and has really limited his minutes.
Tevin Rumley had a great night for us finishing with 21 points, 10 rebounds and 3 assists. His performance rating was a +22 on the night (we were +60 as a team). Shay Brown finished with a +16 performance rating on the night. He had 6 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals,2 assists and no turnovers. Dylan Austin had 13 points, Matt Lauts added 12 and Jake Junis added 11. We had assists on 16 of our 27 FG which is just short of our 60% goal (59.3%). Gordo Barron led us with 4 assists. Gordo and Shay Brown each had 3 steals.
We shot 74% from 2-Point Range (25 of 34) but just 18% from 3-Point range (2-11). If we are shooting that high of a percentage we are getting shots in the paint and really shouldn't be shooting 11 three's... we just didn't need them. Combine that with 16 turnovers and you see why we had a tough time putting Hall away. I do think our depth wore them down a bit down the stretch. I guess we can't complain too much about a 16 point road win in the conference. One thing that is really important right now is keeping Jake Junis out of foul trouble. That has happened way too much this season and has really limited his minutes.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Rock Falls 50 Seneca 31
Seneca may not have the most talented group of kids this season, but just as we expected they understand the game and are very tough defensively. We knew we'd have to show some patience and work for baskets offensively. We ended up with very balanced scoring and no player reached double figures. Gordo Barron and Tevin Rumley led us with 9 points each. Matt Lauts scored 8, Dylan Austin and J.C. McNinch both scored 7 points and Shay Brown chipped in with 6. It was really nice to see Gordo and J.C. step up and play well on the offensive end. Both are the kind of players who do a lot of things that don't show up in box scores, but again if they can play better offensively we have the chance to be very tough down the stretch.
Tevin Rumley led us in assists with 8 and rebounds with 6. As a team, we had assists on 84% of our baskets. Our goal is 60% each game so we far exceeded that. That is also another sign that the offense is starting to click and kids are feeling more comfortable within the offense. Jake Junis really struggled to get in the flow offensively. He was plagued with foul trouble again. However, what I loved was that even when Jake was open in the 4th quarter for shots we would have expected him to shoot, he made the extra pass and took the assist instead. That is what a leader does! Even though he only scored 2 points on the night, I thought he showed some character with that decision.
Overall it was a good weekend. We took several steps in the right direction. Our focus in practice this week is basically the approach that one weekend is not enough. That just has to be a starting point. We have to build on it each day. I loved our approach and energy along with our unselfishness this weekend. We still have to improve our box outs and rebounding. Too many players take a play off and don't get a body on a man. We have 10 regular season games remaining and we will need to improve each time out to be ready for a tough post-season run.
Joe Linton was cleared to play Friday night but has yet to practice. We will turn Joe loose this week and see how his shoulder responds and decide at the end of the week if he is ready to play this Friday.
Tevin Rumley led us in assists with 8 and rebounds with 6. As a team, we had assists on 84% of our baskets. Our goal is 60% each game so we far exceeded that. That is also another sign that the offense is starting to click and kids are feeling more comfortable within the offense. Jake Junis really struggled to get in the flow offensively. He was plagued with foul trouble again. However, what I loved was that even when Jake was open in the 4th quarter for shots we would have expected him to shoot, he made the extra pass and took the assist instead. That is what a leader does! Even though he only scored 2 points on the night, I thought he showed some character with that decision.
Overall it was a good weekend. We took several steps in the right direction. Our focus in practice this week is basically the approach that one weekend is not enough. That just has to be a starting point. We have to build on it each day. I loved our approach and energy along with our unselfishness this weekend. We still have to improve our box outs and rebounding. Too many players take a play off and don't get a body on a man. We have 10 regular season games remaining and we will need to improve each time out to be ready for a tough post-season run.
Joe Linton was cleared to play Friday night but has yet to practice. We will turn Joe loose this week and see how his shoulder responds and decide at the end of the week if he is ready to play this Friday.
Rock Falls 73 Mendota 55
I've written about Performance Ratings in the past and how we use them to evaluate a game. As a team against Mendota on Friday night we had a +91 performance rating. In my 9 years as a head coach that is one of the highest I've seen. That is good news considering the game we had just played at IVC on Tuesday night. For the night, Matt Lauts led with a +25 and Jake Junis was right behind with a +23. Lauts was our leading scorer with 18 points on 7 of 8 from the field and 4 of 4 from the FT line. He also had 6 rebounds. Junis added 12 points and 11 rebounds. Brett Chappell added 12 on four 3-PT FG.
We finally got out and scored some easy baskets in transition which is something we have been pleading with the kids to do more. Not only do we want to get out and run on a stop but also after a made basket. I think when we do so we get the defense on their heels immediately and it keeps us in attack mode. We also made 12 of 15 FT's for 80%.
Offensively, we've put a lot of pressure on kids to be harder to guard. We have not been cutting hard in our motion offense. That is one of many key components to this offense. I did see more hard cutters diving through the lane. Again, this puts pressure on the defense and takes some of the help away on dribble penetration. Now we have to start making good decisions on when to drive.
One negative on the night would be turning the ball over 16 times, 11 of which came in the first half. With a faster paced game will come a few more turnovers, but 11 in a half is just way too many. I thought our defense was solid again. Shay Brown continues to do a nice job out top pressuring the ball and getting deflections. He has really set the tone defensively. With Tevin Rumley back and providing a lift offensively, Dylan Austin has gone back to his quiet assassin role. That is, he just quietly goes about his business on the offensive end and takes advantage of the attention that Jake and Tevin receive. He has been very consistent for us of late.
We finally got out and scored some easy baskets in transition which is something we have been pleading with the kids to do more. Not only do we want to get out and run on a stop but also after a made basket. I think when we do so we get the defense on their heels immediately and it keeps us in attack mode. We also made 12 of 15 FT's for 80%.
Offensively, we've put a lot of pressure on kids to be harder to guard. We have not been cutting hard in our motion offense. That is one of many key components to this offense. I did see more hard cutters diving through the lane. Again, this puts pressure on the defense and takes some of the help away on dribble penetration. Now we have to start making good decisions on when to drive.
One negative on the night would be turning the ball over 16 times, 11 of which came in the first half. With a faster paced game will come a few more turnovers, but 11 in a half is just way too many. I thought our defense was solid again. Shay Brown continues to do a nice job out top pressuring the ball and getting deflections. He has really set the tone defensively. With Tevin Rumley back and providing a lift offensively, Dylan Austin has gone back to his quiet assassin role. That is, he just quietly goes about his business on the offensive end and takes advantage of the attention that Jake and Tevin receive. He has been very consistent for us of late.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
IVC 68 Rock Falls 53
Disappointing night in that our defense did not perform as it has in previous games this season. Offensively we did shoot 51% from the floor, but just 4-10 from the FT line. IVC made 17-27 from the FT line and shot 56% from the floor. We also had 20 turnovers compared to their 9. That alone is pretty tough to overcome. IVC only attempted 6 three's and didn't really need to as they beat us off the dribble repeatedly. Our closeouts were bad, allowing them to drive the ball into the paint. We did a decent job of getting one rotation to help, but the second rotation was always late often resulting in layups.
Offensively, when we took care of the ball we were fine. You just can't give it away 20 times against a good team like IVC. IVC outrebounded us 27-24. They had 10 offensive rebounds to our 6. Between turnovers and the offensive rebound margin, that is 15 more chances they had to get shots off. Again, everything else being equal this is very tough to overcome! Most of our losses this year have been due to poor shooting. Not the case in this one...turnovers and poor defense killed us!
Offensively, when we took care of the ball we were fine. You just can't give it away 20 times against a good team like IVC. IVC outrebounded us 27-24. They had 10 offensive rebounds to our 6. Between turnovers and the offensive rebound margin, that is 15 more chances they had to get shots off. Again, everything else being equal this is very tough to overcome! Most of our losses this year have been due to poor shooting. Not the case in this one...turnovers and poor defense killed us!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
State Farm Classic Roundup
I was a little surprised to get the #2 seed heading into the Classic. I think a lot of that was on the anticipated return of Tevin Rumley and how good we might be with Tevin. I was pleased with how we played for the most part in Bloomington, going 3-1 on the week. We started off a little slow and Tri-Valley did a nice job of defending Jake Junis. I thought we did just enough to get by in the opening round. Dylan Austin led us with 15 points. J.C. McNinch made his debut returning from a fractured foot and scored all 7 of his points in the first quarter. It was great to see J.C. in uniform again! Matt Lauts chipped in 9 points against Tri-Valley. Lauts and Junis both dealt with foul trouble throughout.
The Peoria Christian game was a very tough loss. As we have so many games this season, we really struggled shooting 31% on the night. This one was particularly tough because I thought we ran offense well, took good shots, and defended and played extremely hard on the night. This was one that I thought we deserved to win but just couldn't get shots to fall. It was even tougher knowing we were so close to the semi-finals with Tevin coming back the next day. Jake Junis led us with 15; Dylan Austin added 12 and Matt Lauts 10 points.
The highlight of the week was a 77-65 win over Providence St. Mel. We led by as much as 22 in the third quarter. Tevin Rumley debuted with 19 points and 4 assists. Junis hit four three's and finished with 17 as did Matt Lauts. Brett Chappell finished with 15 (including 3 3-PT FG). We just seemed to have a different bounce in our step for this one. We shot and moved the ball with confidence against a quick St. Mel team. Without a doubt the 4th quarter highlight was the Junis to Rumley alley-oop dunk. Having another scorer like Tevin on the floor helped open things up for Matt Lauts inside and our shooters on the perimeter.
The Macon-Meridian game was our second of the day and third in 24 hours and it showed. We played with tired legs. We did not pressure well defensively and they controlled the tempo the first 30 minutes of the game. Offensively, we took the first available jumps shot way too often instead of working for a better shot. To our kids credit though, we executed the last two minutes of the game flawlessly and came from 8 points down to win 48-46. Brett Chappell scored all 6 of his points in this stretch. Tevin Rumley came up with a huge dunk and a steal to seal the win. Junis and Lauts both struggled through foul trouble again. For us to win a game with Jake only scoring 2 points was big. Tevin Rumley led us with 16 and Dylan Austin added 14.
Jake Junis struggled with some lower back issues throughout the tournament and did not score at his usual clip. He did gut it out and rebounded extremely well for us. Dylan Austin quietly put together a very solid tournament averaging 12 points per game. Matt Lauts showed some improvement for us also. Overall, we have to cut down on the turnovers. We still put the ball in the wrong person's hands at certain times by outletting the ball to a post player or giving the ball to a smaller guard on a backdoor cut amongst the trees. All in all, if we stay healthy this could be a fun team to watch grow here in the second half of the season.
The Peoria Christian game was a very tough loss. As we have so many games this season, we really struggled shooting 31% on the night. This one was particularly tough because I thought we ran offense well, took good shots, and defended and played extremely hard on the night. This was one that I thought we deserved to win but just couldn't get shots to fall. It was even tougher knowing we were so close to the semi-finals with Tevin coming back the next day. Jake Junis led us with 15; Dylan Austin added 12 and Matt Lauts 10 points.
The highlight of the week was a 77-65 win over Providence St. Mel. We led by as much as 22 in the third quarter. Tevin Rumley debuted with 19 points and 4 assists. Junis hit four three's and finished with 17 as did Matt Lauts. Brett Chappell finished with 15 (including 3 3-PT FG). We just seemed to have a different bounce in our step for this one. We shot and moved the ball with confidence against a quick St. Mel team. Without a doubt the 4th quarter highlight was the Junis to Rumley alley-oop dunk. Having another scorer like Tevin on the floor helped open things up for Matt Lauts inside and our shooters on the perimeter.
The Macon-Meridian game was our second of the day and third in 24 hours and it showed. We played with tired legs. We did not pressure well defensively and they controlled the tempo the first 30 minutes of the game. Offensively, we took the first available jumps shot way too often instead of working for a better shot. To our kids credit though, we executed the last two minutes of the game flawlessly and came from 8 points down to win 48-46. Brett Chappell scored all 6 of his points in this stretch. Tevin Rumley came up with a huge dunk and a steal to seal the win. Junis and Lauts both struggled through foul trouble again. For us to win a game with Jake only scoring 2 points was big. Tevin Rumley led us with 16 and Dylan Austin added 14.
Jake Junis struggled with some lower back issues throughout the tournament and did not score at his usual clip. He did gut it out and rebounded extremely well for us. Dylan Austin quietly put together a very solid tournament averaging 12 points per game. Matt Lauts showed some improvement for us also. Overall, we have to cut down on the turnovers. We still put the ball in the wrong person's hands at certain times by outletting the ball to a post player or giving the ball to a smaller guard on a backdoor cut amongst the trees. All in all, if we stay healthy this could be a fun team to watch grow here in the second half of the season.
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