Rockford Rams 47, Warren DeLaSalle 50

Rockford boys' rally falls short against friendly cross-state rival Warren De La Salle
Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press, December 23, 2011 12:57 a.m.

ROCKFORD -- It had been 12 days since the Warren De La Salle Collegiate boys basketball team last played, but Rockford proved to be the rusty ones.

The Pilots defeated the Rams 50-47 after holding Rockford to 32.7 percent shooting for the game. Rockford managed only 30 points through the first three quarters and trailed by 10 before making a late surge. But Rockford’s offense stalled again down the stretch.

The Rams cut the deficit to 44-42 with four minutes remaining, but they failed to score another point until there was 23 seconds remaining.

"They are a talented and well-coached team, and they executed better than we did tonight," said Rockford coach Nick Allen, whose team was coming off a Tuesday night victory against East Grand Rapids. "Our kids play hard and they have a resiliency about them and they don’t give up easy, but we didn’t have enough in the tank tonight."

Though Rockford (2-2) and De La Salle (3-0) are on opposite sides of the state, the two schools have developed a friendly rivalry in recent seasons. Thursday’s game marked the fourth consecutive year the teams have squared off during Christmas break, and both coaches expressed interest in continuing to play in the future.

The Rams were most effective from 3-point range, making 8-of-23 shots. Free-throw shooting is where De La Salle did its most damage. The Pilots converted 20-of-24 free throws, compared to 5-of-7 for the Rams.

Brad Law, a senior guard, led the way for the Pilots with a game-high 18 points. He was 10-of-12 from the free-throw line and his defense was a plus, too.

Chad Carlson paced the Rams with 16 points, including four 3-pointers, but Pilots coach Greg Esler said his team generally did a nice job defending Rockford’s junior point guard.

"We thought the key tonight was stopping Carlson," Esler said. "I thought we did a good job on him. We kept him in front of us. He’s a great player. He is one of the best point guards that I have seen in a long time. He’s heady, and he’s a great coach on the floor.

"Every time he hit a 3, we would switch and put someone else on him. We didn’t get too excited. Brad Law and Marc Wouters did a great job on him."

The only times Rockford led was 2-0 and 5-4. The Pilots led 16-15 in the second quarter when they closed out the first half with a 9-4 run to go up 25-19.

De La Salle’s biggest lead was a 40-30 advantage the Pilots enjoyed after three quarters. Carlson hit two of his 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to help the Rams rally, but it wasn’t enough.

"Rockford is tough, that’s why we play them," Esler said. "They have a great school and I love their fans. They are educated and enthusiastic and they support them. We will continue playing them as long as we can.

 

2011-2012 OK-RED STANDINGS
Team
Conference
Overall
Rockford
11
3
22
6
East Kentwood
11
3
18
4
Hudsonville
11
3
17
6
Grand Haven
8
6
14
11
Jenison
6
8
8
15
Muskegon
6
8
11
11
West Ottawa
3
11
8
13
Grandville
0
14
3
18

SCORES from Saturday, March 24
Rockford 42, Saginaw 54
Lansing Sexton 67, Stev-Lakeshore 32

Flint Beecher 74, St. Francis 60
Southfield Christian 76, Climax-Scotts 44