3/3/2010
Jefferson uses quick start to put end to Parkway's season, 46-36
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| Kirk Dougal/Times Bulletin
Jefferson’s Ryan Ebbeskotte (12) defends Parkway’s Chris Brazle (32) during a sectional basketball game on Tuesday, March 2, in Wapakoneta. |
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BY KIRK DOUGAL
Times Bulletin Editor
kdougal@timesbulletin.com
WAPAKONETA - A fast start was all Delphos Jefferson needed as they jumped out to an early lead and then held on in a defensive battle, beating Parkway, 46-36, in their sectional opener at Wapakoneta on Tuesday night.
Wildcat head coach Marc Smith watched his team take turnovers and something his team may not have counted on - terrific offensive rebounding - to grab an eight-point lead after the first quarter.
"I thought that we had some kids who really stepped up and started taking the ball to the rim," he said after the game. "It got us to the free throw line a little bit and I was really pleased with our effort on the boards. We were very concerned with their physicalness and our lack of overall size that they would dominate us on the glass."
The first quarter was Jefferson's Ryan Ebbekotte's moment to shine as the 6'1" guard used penetration into the lane and backside rebounding to pick up points. He also made a three-pointer for good measure, scoring nine of the Wildcats' 12 points in the opening quarter.
While Jefferson was seemingly able to shoot until they scored, Parkway was working the ball for good shots in the paint only to watch them roll out of the bucket. In fact, it was point guard Blake King who scored their first field goal at the 5:48 mark on a spin move off the right block to crack the scoreboard. At the end of one quarter, Parkway trailed, 12-4.
Only one bucket separated the two teams the rest of the way as the game turned into the close battle most fans expected. Panther shots started to fall in the second quarter when Dillon Long hit a baby hook and Logan Hunter went coast to coast after grabbing a defensive rebound. But every time Parkway narrowed the gap to five or six points, Jefferson's Ebbeskotte or Jordan Jettinghoff would penetrate into the lane and either take the shot or kick out to an open Wildcat. As the buzzer sounded, Jefferson's Logan Bonifas drove the baseline for a score and at the halftime break, the two teams were still separated by eight points at 23-15.
Neither team tore up the nets in the first half with Parkway at seven for 19 (37%) from the field and Jefferson at nine of 25 (36%). But turnovers and rebounds showed the edge in the game. Delphos had grabbed 18 caroms to Parkway's nine in the first two quarters and won the giveaway battle, 4-9.
Parkway came out in the second half fired up and for a few minutes it looked like the game might become closer. Long grabbed an offensive rebound and went right back up for the hoop and old-fashioned three-point play to draw them within five points but that was as close as the game would get. Jefferson was content to pass the ball along the outer edge of the defense while the Panthers worked their high-low set with back picks for some interior points. At the end of three, Delphos was up, 35-25.
The fourth quarter started again like Parkway was going to make a run. Only seconds into the quarter, Corey Decker hit his third trey of the game. But the Jefferson defense and Craig Carder would answer. Carder scored on a drive into the lane and then he took a turnover near mid-court and converted on a runout for four quick points. Meanwhile, the Wildcat defense held Parkway on a 4:02 scoring drought, not allowing another point until King hit two free throws. By then, the gap was still at ten points with too little time left.
"I think we missed some key shots early," said Parkway coach Doug Hughes. "Missed a lot of layups, I thought. This definitely wasn't one of our better games. Jefferson's defense might have had something to do with that. I thought they did a good job changing things up and keeping us off balance. For whatever reason we missed some shots, a lot of shots inside the paint. Plus, they probably scored 12 points off (turnovers) basically uncontested."
Looking forward to the next tournament game, Jefferson's Smith thought he saw some improvements that would help them down the line.
"We've had some defensive inconsistencies this year but I thought defensively we were very good tonight," he said. "Our game plan coming in was to take them out of their sets; they run a lot of nice stuff. We wanted to make sure that they weren't going to get into a half court, set-oriented basketball game and our kids did an excellent job in extending pressure in the half court and changing defenses."
On the night, Jefferson's Ryan Ebbeskotte led all scorers with 16 points, followed by Craig Carder and Logan Bonifas with nine points a piece. For Parkway, Ryan Steinbrunner had ten and Corey Decker nine markers.
Unofficially, Parkway was 14 of 39 from the field on the game for 36 percent, including three of nine (33%) from beyond the arc. They were also five of eight (63%) from the free throw line. Jefferson put in 18 of 48 attempts for 38 percent but were only two of 16 from three-point land for 13 percent. The Wildcats were eight of 15 (53%) from the charity stripe on the night.
The battle of the boards ended up being close after the great Jefferson start with Parkway winning the edge, 26-25. Turnovers still went to the the Wildcats, however, seven to 19.
Jefferson will meet Coldwater on Saturday, March 5 at 6:15 p.m. in the sectional finals at Wapakoneta.
1 2 3 4 Totals
Parkway 4 11 10 11 36
Del. Jefferson 12 11 12 11 46
Parkway - King 2-2-6, Nuttle 0-0-0, Decker 3-0-9, Hunter 2-0-4, Brazle 0-0-0, Steinbrunner 4-2-10, Long 3-1-7, Rollins 0-0-0 Totals 14-5-36
Del. Jefferson - Wiltsie 0-0-0, Ebbeskotte 5-5-16, Jettinghoff 2-0-4, Carder 4-1-9, Bonifas 4-1-9, Renner 0-0-0, Guillen 0-0-0, Antalis 2-0-5 Dunlap 1-1-3, George 0-0-0 Totals 18-8-46
3Pts. Parkway (3) - Decker (3); Jefferson (2) - Ebbeskotte, Antalis
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