Rockford win sets up showdown with Jenison
By Steve Vedder / The Grand Rapids Press

ROCKFORD -- They may not be pretty, but somehow the Rockford Rams are playing for a share of the O-K Red Conference basketball title. And if you'd asked Rockford coach Steve Majerle to calculate those odds three months ago, he would have been the first to ignore the math. But the Rams erased their last obstacle to playing for a shot at the title after Friday's 48-36 win over Hudsonville.

The win sets up a rematch with first-place Jenison next Friday. " We're not pretty to watch and we're different than past teams," Majerle said. " But we've got big, strong kids who can bench-press 290 pounds, we're strong in a half-court defense that makes us tough to score on, and we've done enough to be 11-2 and playing for a Red crown." The Rams are 10-1 in the O-K Red, a game behind Jenison. Rockford has won seven straight since losing to the Wildcats on Jan. 5. Rockford led by as much as 16-4 with less than a minute to go in the first quarter, then led 23-17 at the half and 35-23 at the end of three quarters.

Hudsonville coach Gary Immink said the Rams are much how Majerle describes them: not particularly pretty, but successful.
" They play urgent," he said. "They're not in a rush. They move the ball well and they always move it with a purpose."
Rockford out-rebounded Hudsonville 30-19 and held the Eagles to 32 percent (13-of-40) from the field. " We're methodical, not flashy," Majerle said. "We knew Hudsonville was a danger. They're the third-best team in the conference, or maybe the second or first with a couple breaks."

The Rams got 15 points and five rebounds from Mitch Briggs and 14 points from Bryan Pasciak. Dominic Allen had 14 points for Hudsonville. While the Rams may not be picturesque in their play, Majerle said it doesn't mean there isn't any talent. " The results are there," he said. "We'd like to score 100 points, but the players know they can't do that. " We've got some solid athletes. They deserve a shot at a title, but we had to first get through tonight. We wanted to go into (the Jenison game) one game behind and the kids accomplished their goal."