Stay Connected with YourSeason
Boys Basketball: Andrew turns up pressure, sinks Stagg
Andrew turned up the defensive pressure Friday night, which resulted in turning out the lights on Stagg.
Andrew had four players reach double figures in scoring, led by Jubril Adekoya’s 20 points and 13 rebounds, and clobbered visiting Stagg 81-51 in a SouthWest Suburban mismatch.
Mike Bobek (13 points, four assists), Tyler Hook (11 points, five rebounds) and Glorind Lisha (10 points, five assists) provided plenty of support for Adekoya and the No. 11 Thunderbolts (5-0 overall, 2-0 in conference).
“Jubril is the lead wolf, but we have a pack surrounding him,” Andrew coach Mike O’Halloran said. “It was a total team effort.”
It was a close game for the better part of the opening half. In fact, Stagg (5-2, 1-1) led 28-27 late in the second quarter.
But the Thunderbolts ended the half on a 10-3 run, highlighted by a pair of steals by Lisha, who scored seven points in the second quarter.
By the time the third quarter ended, Andrew turned a 37-31 lead at the half into a commanding 61-41 advantage heading into the fourth.
“We had that little spurt right before the half,” O’Halloran said. “The key was we wore them down with our depth and conditioning.”
Adekoya scored six straight points to end the third, which pretty much wiped away any chances the Chargers had of mounting a comeback.
“We tried to speed them up with the pressure and get them out of their comfort zone,” Adekoya said. “That’s what helped us with those runs.”
As much as Andrew’s pressure hurt, so did Stagg’s inability to develop an inside scoring attack.
It didn’t help that Ryan Dahleen, the Chargers’ main inside threat, was glued to the bench much of the game with foul trouble.
The Thunderbolts did a fine job defensively on Stagg sharp-shooter Sean Dwyer, who was held to one three-pointer and 11 points. Dwyer, a junior, has hit seven three-pointers in one game and eight in another this season.
Sophomore Max Strus matched Dwyer’s output with 11 points, while Brett Kaiser and Steve Kubiak added 10 points apiece for Stagg.
The Chargers were 18-of-38 from the field, including 5-of-18 beyond the stripe. Andrew was 30-of-53 from the field and 4-of-12 from 3-point land.
© 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