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Girls Basketball: Milestone win for Skyler Jessop, Grayslake Central
Deerfield's coach, Mike Muldrow, talks to the players during their game against Grayslake on Monday, Jan. 30th. | Dan Luedert~Sun-Times Media
Updated: January 30, 2012 9:49PM
Clearly, Grayslake Central coach Steve Ikenn got his message across at halftime.
After seeing their coach steamed almost enough to set off fire alarms in the gym after the first two quarters ended with his powerhouse team trailing Deerfield by a point, the Ram players held the host Warriors to four points in the last 16 minutes to post a 46-31 nonconference win.
Grayslake (20-4 with all losses to big-school powers Maine South, Libertyville, Warren and Stevenson), will host Johnsburg on Wednesday.
“We had a little ‘talk’ at halftime about making adjustments and our defensive intensity,” said Ikenn. “We were lackadaisical at times.
“Our passes ... we were just throwing them and hoping somebody would be there to catch them. Defensively, we didn’t do a good job of communicating.
“We were hustling, but we weren’t doing a good job talking and helping out on screens.”
As a result, Deerfield (5-20, including a 56-21 loss to Grayslake’s rival, Vernon Hills, last week) led at halftime.
Liz Yucknut had 14 points for the Warriors in the first half, and scored her team’s four second-half points.
Deerfield was 1-for-18 from the field in the second half and its last basket came with 3:44 left in the third quarter.
Down 27-26 at halftime, the Rams took the lead for good on Emma Shepard’s three-pointer that made it 31-29 with 3:29 left in the third quarter.
That started an 11-1 run that got Grayslake out of harm’s way.
“The important thing is, we regained our focus in the second half,” Ikenn said. “I think we’ll be ready for the tournament.”
Either Grayslake Central or Vernon Hills likely will win the Class 3A sectional title, and Deerfield coach Mike Muldrow has now seen both teams play against his squad.
“They’re very different teams,” the coach said. “Grayslake has a nice post player (sophomore Morgan Dahlstrom) but they’re much more guard-oriented. Vernon Hills looks inside so much, they’re so big and finish extremely well.
“It’s an interesting matchup.”
Skyler Jessop led the Rams in scoring with 18 points. She now 1,010 for her career.
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