Boys Basketball: Marian Catholic steals away from Joliet Catholic

Updated: January 7, 2012 12:15AM

It was clear from the start Marian Catholic’s defensive pressure would be too much for Joliet Catholic.

The Marian backcourt employed thievery at its finest, with Ki-Jana Crawford (6 steals, 3 assists) and Christian Halley (13 points, 5 steals) repeatedly picking the pockets of the Hillmen en route to a 56-26 East Suburban Catholic victory in Chicago Heights.

But it wasn’t quite the blowout the final score might indicate. Marian led 23-15 at halftime and struggled to score against a patient Joliet Catholic 2-3 zone.

“I probably took us out of a rhythm offensively trying to get people some playing time,” Marian coach Mike Taylor said. “It wasn’t pretty, but we got it done.”

Tyler Ulis led Marian (9-5, 3-0) with 14 points, one of 10 Spartans to hit the scorebook. Marian had opportunities to blow the game open early, forcing 16 first-half turnovers, but struggled to convert from the foul line (11-for-22).

It wasn’t until Joliet Catholic was forced to abandon its zone in the fourth quarter when Marian ran away, closing on a 22-5 run.

“Defensively, holding a team to 26 points is pretty darn good,” Taylor said. “Offensively, the only rhythm we got into was off the transition from the steals. We have to do a better job of shooting the ball.”

At one point in the third quarter, Marian had as many steals (15) as Joliet Catholic had points.

“Our absolute weakness is ballhandling, and Marian’s strength is on the ball pressure,” Joliet Catholic coach Joe Gura said. “It was like the perfect storm, and that was the difference in the game.”

Joliet Catholic (4-10. 0-3) was led by Ryan Peter (9 points) and Shakar Washington (7 points).

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