ALTON – One big run can be the difference in any basketball game.
Just ask Springfield Lanphier, who had an 18-4 third-quarter run on Jersey in the Panthers' opening game of the Alton Tip-Off Classic Wednesday night; the broke a 24-24 halftime tie and proved decisive as the Lions went on to a 60-48 win over the Panthers to clinch a spot in Saturday evening's third-place game; the Panthers opened the season at 0-1 with a Friday night game against Breese Mater Dei ahead of them.
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“The thing we talked about prior to the game was having some calmness, having some poise,” said Panther coach Kevin Strebel. “We just didn't do that early on. Was it some first-game jitters? Absolutely, but I feel like we've got three returning seniors and a fourth senior who wasn't out last year who had been out previously.
“That's not a lack of experience; we need to handle those situations better. We've got to do a better job of making sure we are not turning it over as much because that was the name of the game right there.”
The Lions had taken a 14-7 quarter-time lead on the Panthers, only to see Jersey rally back to forge a 24-24 tie at the halftime siren. “In the first half, I was kind of happy coming out of there tied because I felt as if we had played a poor half,” Strebel said, “and then, there we were.
“The third quarter really got us; we gave up 21 points, I think, in the third quarter and a lot of it wasn't because they were running a superior half-court offense or anything; it was us handing them the ball and an easy path to the basket.”
The outcome did give Strebel an idea of what the Panthers need to work on. “We're going to face lots of pressure as the season goes along,” Strebel said. “We're going to handle that pressure better than we did tonight. I've got faith in these girls; I've seen them do it time and time again last season.
“I don't think that's going to be as big a concern going down the road; Lanphier is quick, just very aggressive. They did a great job of pressuring us, so you have to give them some credit, but boy, we have to take an awful lot of the blame on that too. We got in a hurry, we thought we had to get a layup off their press or we were just casual with the ball and throw up over the top of somebody.”
Bethany Muenstermann – one of the area's best shooters – led Jersey with 22 points, all but one coming from behind the three-point arc, with Mackenzie Thurston adding 16 points and Peyton Tisdale four points; Jeniya Griffin led Lanphier with 20 points, with Jaala Smylie adding 10 points and Lezhuria Williams and Blessing Casey each getting six points.
Saturday's final games begin at 4:30 p.m., with the championship game set for 7:30 p.m.
