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BASKETBALL: Indians bounce back, crush Lawrenceville

Posted December 28, 2011 10:00 pm

Doug Daniels

</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Du Quoin's pair of games on Tuesday at the 5th Annual Duster Thomas Hoops Classic in Pinckneyville were both decided well before the final buzzer, but a big difference in shooting percentage for the Indians in the two contests led to contrasting outcomes.

Du Quoin shot just 37% in a 68-46 beating at the hands of then-unbeaten Olney in the 11:30 a.m. game, but returned at 4:00 p.m. to hammer Lawrenceville 76-43 behind a 31-for-50 (62%) shooting display in which four Indians finished in double figures.

"I'm proud of them for bouncing back like that, it's not easy," said DHS head coach Gave Sveda. "We talked about not having self-pity and not feeling sorry for ourselves and come back and play our game. We're getting better, that's the main thing."

The Indians made a game of their matchup with the Tigers of Olney, rallying back from a 16-4 opening quarter hole to trail just 20-17 following back-to-back baskets by Cayle Diggins.

Michael Fehrenbacher responded, though, with one of Olney's eleven three-pointers in the game. Joel Eagleson then connected from downtown a possession later and suddenly the Tigers were back up nine.

"That's an awfully good ball club," said Sveda. "They knocked down a lot of shots, they've got a lot of players that do some nice things for them."

Up eight with a chance to extend their lead before the half, Olney turned it over when John Galik swiped away a steal and headed for the goal, drawing contact as his lay-up fell through the net. Galik's three-point play kept Du Quoin in it down 27-22 at the break.

The Indians were still within five when the threes began to rain once again for Olney.

Brook Pampe and Alec St. Pierre both hit a pair of triples in the third period which allowed the Tigers to distance themselves despite the Indians trading two-point baskets along the way.

Du Quoin turned the ball over 13 times in the game compared to Olney's 3 give-aways.

"Turnovers were the difference," Sveda said. "They only had three turnovers, that's amazing. They can handle the ball. We applied some pressure at times, went to a zone and trapped them, and they still handled that pressure and did a good job."

Diggins and Brandon Williams led DHS with 10 points apiece against Olney, Galik added 9, Daulton Beltz 6, Nate Boss 4, and Austin Mapps and Jon Boss 2. Pampe led the Tigers with 20 points, Fehrenbacher finished with 17.

With just three hours passed since the conclusion of the Olney game, Du Quoin returned to the floor with no signs of fatigue as they outlasted Lawrenceville with their depth for a comfortable 76-43 victory.

Lawrenceville, also known as the Indians, led 16-13 after one period but Du Quoin took control in the second.

With the score knotted at 22-22, Diggins drove to the basket and drew a foul, completed the three-point play, then added two more free throws a possession later. Williams knocked down a turnaround jumper with 1:42 left in the half, then was good on one-of-two free throws with 58 seconds to go, completing an 8-0 run for Du Quoin.

"We finally started shooting the ball well (in the second quarter), and that really helped," Sveda said. "We had four guys in double figures for the first time this year, so offensively things started to click a little bit for us. We're doing a good job of getting the ball in the post and other guys are cutting off of that."

"Defensively, we found our zone is working a little bit for us. We went to a three-quarter court press and that really paid off, and our kids are doing a better job of rotating on the back side of that."

Lawrenceville kept it close for a while in the third, but Du Quoin scored thirteen unanswered points over a three-minute stretch to put the game on ice.

Du Quoin's depth proved to be a key factor with six players scoring at least eight points. Galik led the way with 16, Diggins had 15, Williams and Brenden Fred 11, Da. Beltz 9, Dillon Beltz 8, J. Boss 3, N. Boss 2 and Daulton Donoghue 1.

"I've talked about our depth all year, I'm not afraid to play anybody on the bench," said Sveda. "I know some of those guys don't get in very often but they keep their head up and work hard in practice. They do a good job when they come in there and they stay positive. I think they're all good kids, they all work hard, they're doing an outstanding job when they come in the game for us."

Olney later fell to Benton 44-40 for their first loss of the season, meaning Du Quoin still has a shot at playing in the championship game on Wednesday night depending on tie-breakers and the outcome of their 8:30 a.m. matchup with Benton.

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