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Big 3rd quarter
leads Sabers over Portagers
By DAVID
L. BARBER, Manistee News Advocate
Managing Editor
Published:
Friday, February 12, 2010
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MANISTEE — For 16 minutes, two teams going
in opposite directions met in the middle Thursday night — trading
baskets like heavyweight fighters trade punches.
But when the bell rang to start the third round — i.e., the third
quarter — the Manistee Catholic Central Sabers came off the ropes to
pummel the Portagers en route to pounding a 49-34 victory.
The win raised MCC’s record to 12-3 overall and 9-2 in the West Michigan
D League, while the loss dropped the Portagers to 3-10 overall and 3-9
in league play.
“This is a tough conference, with lots of very good teams,” said Onekama
coach Roger Smith. “And you can include this Manistee team as being as
good as any of ‘em. They play hard and hustle from end to end.”
Neither team was able to establish a
consistent offensive tempo in the first half, with the Sabers managing
to take a 15-10 lead at the end of the first quarter, before charging
off the floor at the intermission with a seemingly fragile 25-20 lead.
But whatever instructions MCC coach Dale Edmondson Jr. delivered to his
players at halftime paid immediate dividends to start the third quarter. |
Junior forward Nick Kolanowski, who entered
the game with a 13-point per game scoring average, slipped through the
Portagers’ defense to net a layup, and then raced down the court a few
seconds later to toss in a three-pointer from the corner to give his
team its first double-digit lead of the night, 30-20.
After Onekama’s Skyler Kimpel scored on a
tip-in and then added a single free throw a few minutes later, the
Sabers really took off, scoring on a lay-up by junior forward Nick
Doyle, a 3-pointer and lay-up by senior guard Garrett Owens and a tip-in
by senior forward Vince Modjeski.
And just that quick, the Sabers had delivered their knock-out punch,
taking a 16-point lead into the final quarter, 41-25.
“I thought for that third quarter, and the first few minutes of the
fourth quarter, we really challenged them defensively,” Edmondson said.
“I think we still have to get better defensively, but I was proud the
kids came through when they did.”
Though the Portagers scored 10 points in each
of the first two quarters, Manistee Catholic Central turned up the heat
on its box-and-one defense to limit the Portagers to just five points in
the third quarter, and nine in the fourth quarter.
Senior forward Nathan Miller and Kolanowski paced the Sabers’ offensive
attack with 10 points each, while Doyle and senior guard Nick Niesen
chipped in with eight points each.
Kimpel led the Portagers with 14 points, while teammate Joe Kosiboski
scored nine points.
The Portagers were 8-for-14 from the free-throw line, while the Sabers
were 2-for-2. |