JERSEYVILLE - The buzz was overwhelming as hundreds of spectators filled the gymnasium of Jersey Community High School Friday evening when the Civic Memorial High School Eagles boys basketball team arrived to compete against the Panthers.
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With a packed house filled with friends and family members from both Jersey and Bethalto, one would think that the game was a conference championship by the way the audience erupted throughout the night.
In a grueling 32 minutes of play, the Jersey Panthers were able to defend their home court and grasped a 59-52 victory against the Eagles.
Having been defeated by the Eagles 57-54 in early December, Jersey Head Coach Stote Reeder knew that this time, the Panthers had to play for keeps.
“We were lucky as can be to be down by three at half,” Reeder said, “CM really did attack us, at half, the boys came in and said how bad we were being defensively. During the third quarter, we had a chance to push it out and we didn’t do it, but man, that fourth quarter our defense really kicked it in.”
After a tough loss against Mater Dei Catholic High School on Jan. 30, Reeder’s boys had to continue to play with heart and determination headed into the last few weeks of the regular season. Friday’s game against Civic Memorial was the first of many challenges to come, including matchups at Mount Vernon, Carrollton, Triad, Highland, Waterloo and Mascoutah.
“A.J. Shaw, Lucas Ross and Blake Wittman,” Reeder mentioned, “those three sophomores were on the floor together and they kept us in the game. They did a great job and our bench was awesome tonight.”
At the other end of the court, the Eagles’ coach Doug Carey was clearly frustrated by his team’s loss, noting that the young men can perform well for the first three quarters. The second they enter that fourth period, everything seems to go downhill from there.
“It was a rivalry game that only one team wanted to win in the fourth quarter,” Carey said bluntly. “The team that wanted to win won.”
Friday night’s loss at Jersey continues the Eagles’ losing streak to three games, beginning with the 63-58 loss at Collinsville, followed by a 49-44 loss at Columbia.
“Our problem is, we don’t have any boys who want to step up in the fourth quarter and win the game. It’s happened the past four out of five of the last ones we’ve lost, and if it continues to happen, we’ll be stuck on fifteen this season, too.”
In the first, the Eagles seemed to hold most of the command, especially when it came to offense. Although the Panthers were producing shots, the boys in purple and gold were showing intense speed and adding the necessary pressure to stagger their opponents. The period was relatively close until the Eagles broke the 9-point tie after a rebound shot from JaQuan Adams. From there, the pressure persisted until the period ended with the Eagles holding a 6-point lead over the Panthers with a score of 18-12.
A series of fouls on David Lane earned the Eagles three free points right off the back, allowing his team to momentarily hold a nine-point lead over the Panthers. Unfortunately for Civic Memorial, this lead was short-lived and Jersey had determination to grasp at some opportunities to score.
Fouls on both Jake Ridenhour and Lucas Ross allowed for three extra points to hit the Panthers’ side of the scoreboard. With the assistance by a three-pointer from Blake Wittman and a rebound shot in the basket by Zac Ridenhour, the Panthers were only three points behind the Eagles with a score of 23-20.
The Panthers continued their offensive push with another foul, this time committed on Drake Kanallakan to earn two more free points. Two baskets by Zac Ridenhour allowed him to bring the score to 24 before Adam Hill could raise the Eagles score to 29 to close out the second.
The third was where the real nail-biting gameplay took place. The tenacious back-and-forth between the two talented and well-matched teams were truthfully neck and neck. Throughout the period, each player worked to best one another with a series of tying plays. The score was tied not just once or twice, but four times before the conclusion of the period. At the end of the fourth, the score was tied at 45-45.
The neck and neck play continued as the pattern of tying, temporarily grasping the lead and having to play catch up went on. After the score was tied yet again at 51-51, The Panthers was able to keep the Eagles away from their net and safely away from their side of the court at all. With patience and some key skill shots by Jacob Witt and Zac Ridenhour, the Panthers was able to further their lead, only allowing one more point to be scored by Adams on a foul shot. At final, the Panthers defeated the Eagles 59-52.
Senior Kanallakan truthfully led the Panthers by example Friday evening, bringing in 15 points over four periods of play. Senior Zac Ridenhour produced a total of 13 points before rolling his ankle with just under a minute left of the game. Behind Ridenhour with 10 points contributed was sophomore Wittman. Junior Jake Ridenhour knocked in the majority of his nine points in the fourth quarter. Contributing three points for the Panthers was junior Ryan Herkert. Senior Jacob Witt kept the Eagles’ defense at bay most of the evening and put two points on the board in the fourth.
Sophomore JaQuan Adams was a true powerhouse for the Eagles, producing 14 points. Both senior Brett Lane and junior David Lane were able to bring in eight points each. Senior Adam Hill knocked in seven points throughout the evening while junior Brandon Hampton locked down four. Senior Justin Williams and sophomore Kaden Clark each scored three points each. Juniors Jaxen Helmkamp and Camryn Gerhardt knocked in a two-point basket each and sophomore Geoff Withers scored from the foul line for one.
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