JENISON -- Jenison needed a bit
of everything to get by Rockford: tough play from its two standout
guards everyone's talking about and extra
tough play from its other guard. Bet folks start talking about that
other guard now, too. Senior Michael Vaughan gave the Wildcats that
extra boost Friday, helping Jenison stay unbeaten with a 61-53 OK
Red Conference victory against
tenacious Rockford before a loud crowd of about 3,000.
Of course, a
critical 16-0 run in the second quarter, making more free throws
(24) than Rockford attempted (10) and outrebounding the Rams
34-14 also helped
Jenison improve to 8-0 overall and 5-0 in the Red. "
With Jenison, it's choose your poison, and I thought we did a pretty good job," said
Rockford coach Steve Majerle, whose team is 4-2 and 4-1. "Ty Tanis and
Wes Trammell are pretty good, but Vaughan just made some biggies. That was
the key
in keeping us four points away. Every time we got close, that sucker went down
the lane and threw one in."
Vaughan, who scored 13 points, including the first six for the Wildcats in
the fourth quarter, got plenty of help from the team's two biggies. Tanis,
a senior,
totaled 23 points and Trammell, a junior, scored 14.
"
Rockford is good, and they did a nice job on Wes and Ty," Vaughan said. "My
shots were falling. It was nice that our guys trusted me to take it to the
rack." There seemed to be plenty of trust going around, especially in
the second quarter. Trailing 10-5 early in the quarter, the Wildcats went
on a 16-0
run to take
the lead for good. During that five-minute span, Rockford missed all nine
of its
shots and made six turnovers.
While the Rams battled back to within 34-32
late in the third quarter and 47-45 with three minutes left in the game,
they never got closer. Jenison made all eight of its free-throw attempts
down the stretch to seal the win. In all, the Wildcats made 24-of-30
free throws, while the Rams
were 7-for-10
from the line.
Patience pays off
"
We really wanted to get to the line, and we did a good job of that," Jenison
coach Brett Dyke said. "We shoot 83 percent as a team, and
that's pretty good. Rockford is a good team, they did a nice job
defensively, but I think we finally settled down and started taking
some better shots. We were more patient."
The Rams did better,
too, after their scoreless spell in the second quarter. Behind
12 points by Mitch Briggs and nine points each
from Lukas Gladstone, Jake Steinebach and Brogan Bibler, they rallied.
It just was never enough.
"
You just cannot play from behind against this team," Majerle said. "They
are too smart and they hit free throws." They were too much Friday. "
This win really means a lot to us," said Tanis, who also grabbed seven rebounds. "Rockford
came out really strong, and we knew they would. This win was a real confidence
booster to us."