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Dec 15, 2008 Check Out previous Blogs
No doubt the 3 point shot has changed the game. At its inception, the 3 pointer belonged to a select-few gunners who'd pop it occasionally when left open. Now, the game has changed, practically all players practice the trey. They do it at an early age. Coaches devise the penetrate & "kick out" as part of their game routinely. It is part of the basic fiber of the game. Some of the results continue to amaze us.
For Truman High, Freshman Zach Large came off the bench to nail six 3-pointers as the Patriots knocked off Rockhurst 55-50 in the McDonald's Blue Springs-BSS Tournament last week. Large, a deadeye at practice, was the beneficiary of the "feeds" from James Hosey who iced the game with two late free throws. This freshman hasn't even played 1month of games yet and he's leading the way over a perennial state-power! That's one impact of the 3-ball.
Justin Clark, William Chrisman, has his eyes set on several significant marks. Clark, who's headed to Illinois State next year, has 288 3-point baskets in his career. He'd driving towards the state record of 355 (he needs 67 more). Clark also passed the 1500 point plateau recently and is on pace to top the 2000 point barrier!
Springfield Catholic Girls team recently reflected a trend that is going to occur more and more. This week in a game against a much taller Ash Grove team, the Irish made more 3 point baskets than 2 point baskets in their 64-56 victory. For the game, the Irish were 10 of 29 as they continually whipped the ball around the perimeter until one of the players had a "good look". Getting outrebounded 30-18 by the Pirates made this strategy look very appealing.
At the Centralia Invitational, no lead was safe on semifinal night. Macon was able to overcome a 13 point 4th quarter deficit to edge Sturgeon 61-59. Sturgeon still led by 5 points with only 55 seconds left but a 3-pointer and Josh Bailey's put back rebound after a last second steal iced the deal. In the 2nd game of the night, Hallsville had it in "coast gear" as they held onto a 20 point lead with 3:12 left in the 3rd Quarter. Paris (3-1) sliced the Indian lead to a meager 4 points after mounting a 13-0 run at the 5:33 mark of the last quarter. However, in this game, Hallsville regained the momentum then pulled away for a 62-46 victory.
How's this conference shaping up? In the suburban South, three of the girls teams are unbeaten at this moment. Parkway South (4-0), LIndbergh (5-0), Kirkwood (5-0) are leading the way. Keep an eye on these three teams and some of the other tranditional powerhouses in the conference-- Lafayette, Marquette and Oakville.
How quickly in this era, leads can melt away. In the Championship game of the Winnentonka Tournament, Oak Park (4-1) was gliding along with a 17 point lead in the first half against Raytown. After a rousing half time talk, Raytown caught fire and tied the game. James Robinson's late free throws enabled Oak Park to hang onto the thrilling 46-45 win. Oak Park's title takes some of the sting out of the sectional loss to Raytown last season.
Speaking of free throws, early in the season a team can escape losses when they aren't accurate on their charity tosses. As the season rolls along, and the games become tighter, the free throws become an absolute "MUST" to win. Springfield Central(2-0) beat Ozark(4-2) 88-78 as they struggled from the line with 26 of 42 performance . On the bright side, the Bulldogs made of 15 of 18 in the last 90 seconds to ice the win over the always-tough Tigers.
Webster Groves Statesman are enjoying a long ride of success on the basketball court these days. Coach Jay Blossom was faced with a stiff challenge this year. He only had 2 starters returning, high scoring Drew Hanlon graduated, just 3 seniors. Nevertheless, the Statesman earned their way to the Championship game of the Webster Tournament against Maplewood. Bryant Allen (Maplewood) dropped in the final 4 points on two buckets late in the game (the winner with only 3 seconds left) to pull out a magnificent 54-53 win. The loss broke a 53 game winning streak on the WG court ! Couple points here-- Allen did EXACTLY the same thing to win STATE 3A for Maplewood (6-1)last year. He scored the State winner for the Blue Devils. He is the prototypical "money" player. Give HIM the ball with the game on the line. WG, on the other hand, is a force to be dealt with in St Louis basketball circles. No down year for the Statesman! Coach Blossom, always a proponent of using the bench, has a solid corp of 10-12 players who will fly around the court defensively, score off defense, rebound and share the ball.
Some conference peeks... One of the quietest, yet very solid teams, also comes from the Suburban South Boys Conference. Parkway West, under Coach Bill Sodeman is 4-1 and captured the Parkway Round-Robin with a win over highly ranked, Parkway South. Their only loss was to an outstanding McCluer team. A real battle looms on the horizon between the Longhorns and the Statesman.
The ABC conference sees a young, talented John Burroughs(4-1) team that looks to tangle with MICDS (3-1) and Principia (4-1) for the league title. Of course, MICDS returns McPherson Moore and Michael Scott from last year's highly successful team. The Rams have been very impressive in their early wins this season. The MICDS Holiday Tournament should be a good gauge for them.
Some familiar names sit atop the Sub North. Hazelwood Central (6-0) and McCluer North (4-0). Both teams have to be looking over their shoulders at the talented McCluer Comets(6-1) who have beaten highly regarded Lafayette, Chaminade and Jennings twice! After Christmas, these teams will begin their head-head skirmishes. Stay tuned.
In the Jefferson County conference, Herculaneum is pumping in 70+ppg as they've opened up with a 4-1 record. Coach Josh Stratton has a squad of 5 seniors to lead the way. Other teams with strong starts this year are Hillsboro (4-0), Crystal City (3-0) and DeSoto (4-1). DeSoto beat Jeff City at home but dropped a game to the host school in the Hillsboro Tournament.
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