Boys Basketball: De La Salle blows by Hales

Updated: February 17, 2012 10:09PM

Basketball is a game of numbers though certain intangibles and variables are not easily measured. Even so, it was pretty easy for Tom White to know what his team was missing without having Alvin Ellis.

“He completes us,” the De La Salle coach said.

The wiry and athletic 6-4 junior forward returned from a four-game absence to score 12 points off the bench as the visiting Meteors thrashed Hales 57-38 to snap a two-game losing streak Friday night.

Ellis suffered a high ankle sprain and sat out for three and a half weeks.

“I was just itching to get back into the game,” Ellis said. “It was really tough to sit and watch everybody else play.”

Otherwise, the positive numbers also favored the Meteors. They converted six three-pointers to just one for the Spartans. They also registered a stunning 12 blocks. Ellis had three rejections, including several spectacular saves from the weak side. “We’re the kind of team that has everybody’s back,” he said.

Ellis added six rebounds, two steals and an assist. “I just wanted to get the team pumped up,” he said. Ellis and junior guard Marcus White parlayed early hot shooting to help the Meteors (15-5, 6-3 Catholic North) seize the early lead.

Despite suffering from the effects of a migraine headache, White opened the game by drilling two three-pointers off smooth passes from Demarcus Richardson. He hit three three-pointers in scoring a game-high 15 points. He also had four assists and three steals.

“I was feeling it at the start,” he said. “Yeah, I had a bit of a headache, but it wasn’t bothering me that much during the game. We just wanted to come out and be aggressive and play hard.”

The other startling number was Hales’ horrendous free-throw shooting. The Spartans missed all eight of their free throws in the second quarter. They converted just 3 of 15 free throws in the first half. After ripping off a seven-point run to narrow a nine-point deficit to 20-18 early in the second quarter, Hales’ inability to take advantage at the free throw line enabled De La Salle to close the first half on a 16-2 burst for a commanding 36-20 lead at the break.

Richardson scored seven points, and he also recorded five assists and two steals. Richardson and Josh White made three-pointers during the run.

Six-foot-9 junior Gavin Schilling had eight points, nine rebounds and four blocks for the Meteors. Fighting foul trouble most of the night, 6-7 junior Alex Foster had six points, six rebounds and three blocked shots.

Senior swingman Eddie Alcantara scored 12 points to lead the Spartans (9-17, 2-8).

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