Marion C. Early’s explosive second quarter gave the Panthers a definitive lead on their home court Thursday night against Greenwood. The Panthers balanced attack from the perimeter left the Greenwood Blue Jays scrambling to catch up.
“Our strategy was to get everyone involved early, double up on their key guy and keep pressure on their guards to hopefully come out on top and luckily we did tonight,” said Panther head coach Brett Rippee. “Different guys have stepped up and got it done for us at different times of the year and that’s why we have 14 wins.”
After a slow beginning, Gavin Lombas jumpstarted the Marion C. Early offense by nailing five shots beyond the arc in the first half. The rest of the Panthers followed suit, including Jordon Criss who put up 12 of the Panthers’ 28 second quarter points despite taking a head-first dive down the stairs after the ball.
“We tried to bring intensity the entire night,” Criss said. “When we’re hitting shots, everyone’s on fire and it’s always fun.”
Criss was the lead-scorer for the Panthers with 24 total points. Gavin Lombas finished with 19 while Brandon Bell added another 13 to the Panther score with 7 rebounds.
Knowing they were outsized, Marion C. Early depended on their pressure defense to keep them in the game. The Panthers were able to force 15 turnovers while only giving up the ball three times on their side of the court.
One thing they weren’t able to do was shut down Greenwood’s Julius Walker. With 35 points on the night, and nearly as many rebounds, Walker was responsible for over half of the Blue Jays’ final score. Greenwood coach Darren Taylor said while Walker is a standout player, the team is learning to play around him and find balanced success on the court.
“Julius is a nice player and presents a matchup problem because of his size, but he also handles the ball really well and can step outside and shoot it a little bit,” Taylor said. “We’re starting to learn to play around him a little better—as he’s getting double and triple-teamed—we are getting some people to cut to the basket and I think as the year goes on we’ll get better at that.”
Both teams will next compete in the Stockton tournament beginning Tuesday, January 19. Marion C. Early, now 14-3, will open the tournament against Humansville for the second time this season while Greenwood, 6-7, will face Lockwood in the first round. If both teams win, it will be a rematch in the second round.
Greenwood 69, Marion C. Early 78
Greenwood 12-14-21-20—69 Marion C. Early 13-28-19-18—78
Greenwood—Julius Walker 35, Gavin Litherland 14, Matt Rowe 9, Joseph Brock 2, Aki Coller 2, Barrett Nau 1
Marion C. Early—Jordon Criss 24, Gavin Lombas 19, Brandon Bell 13, Connor Wilkins 10, Josh Turner 6, Hunter Wilkins 4, Nick Beavers 2
