Stay Connected with YourSeason
Boys Basketball: Rich South continues fast break success
Updated: November 22, 2011 11:18PM
Similar to its season-opening victory the night before, when Rich South took control in the second half against Plainfield North, the Stars asserted themselves in the third quarter Tuesday night against Joliet West.
Leading 25-18 at halftime, Rich South continued to exploit Joliet West in transition and get open underneath to build a 46-29 advantage on its way to a 65-48 victory in the second round of the Tigers’ Thanksgiving Classic.
“They struggled against our trap and we ended up getting some turnovers and transition buckets off our defense,’’ Rich South coach Scot Ritter said. “The defense is what kind of helped us tonight.’’
Rich South guard Ralph Abraham ended any hope of a dramatic fourth-quarter comeback by Joliet West when he scored the first seven points of the final quarter for a 53-29 cushion.
“We just kind of ran with what worked,’’ Ritter said.
Abraham scored 16 of his game-high 18 points in the second half. Cedric Russell had 13 points and Marquell Small finished with 12. Rich South was dominant despite center John Ruffin sitting much of the game because of foul trouble.
“Our philosophy, the way we play defense and the way we help each other out, that was conducive to what we were able to do tonight,’’ Ritter said.
Center Marlon Johnson led Joliet West (1-1) with nine points and Carl Terrell had eight.
“I give all the credit to Rich South tonight,’’ Joliet West coach Luke Yaklich said. “They did to us what we game-planned to do to them. We wanted to attack the boards. We wanted to take the fight to them. We wanted to be the aggressor.’’
“It’s a credit to their kids. They’re quick. They’re physical. It’s a good early season wake-up call for us.’’
Experience also played a factor — Rich South starts five seniors; Joliet West starts three juniors.
“The tougher team that made fewer mistakes won tonight,’’ Yaklich said. “That team beat us in the summer. Right now, Rich South is a better basketball team than us. It really boils down to just toughness. They were tougher tonight than we were.’’
Plainfield South rebounded from an opening-night loss to Metea Valley with a 22-point third quarter en route to a 78-55 victory over Tinley Park. Ed Presniakovas led the Cougars with 22 points and Kevin Coker had 13.
© 2012 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit www.suntimesreprints.com. To order a reprint of this article, click here.
Cell Phone Alerts
Comments Click here to view or make a comment