RHS 70, Grand Haven 65
Rockford's
Redell shuts down Grand Haven sharpshooter
Saturday, January 19, 2002 By Alan Babbitt
The Grand Rapids Press
It's never too late to pull out your security blanket.
Rockford went to its in the waning moments of Friday night's tense O-K Red Conference showdown at Grand Haven. Sophomore guard Michael Redell answered the call with the defensive pressure the fourth-ranked team in Class A needed to wrap up a 70-65 win over the host Buccaneers.
In an 11-second span late in the see-saw contest, Redell prevented Grand Haven sharpshooter Dean Nauta from getting off two game-tying 3-point attempts, then forced him to rush another that fell short. The Rams followed up the sequence with game-clinching free throws from Kyle Trewhella with 9.5 seconds remaining.
"I put Redell on him," Rockford coach Steve Majerle said, explaining how his unbeaten Rams had success against Nauta when it mattered most despite the fact he had already produced a game-high 19 points.
"I couldn't do it early because (Redell) had two fouls on him. He's our best defender, bar none. It's nice to have somebody that can clamp down."
Nauta carried the load for the Buccaneers in the second half. He rebounding after scoring only four points in the first half, even though a furious pace led to a 41-37 halftime lead for Rockford.
The Rams kept Nauta in check for most of the third quarter until he buried a 3-pointer with 1:07 left in the period that evened the score at 51-51. He stayed hot in the fourth quarter, netting four points on consecutive possessions that put Grand Haven ahead 58-56 with 4:12 remaining. The play helped the Buccaneers overcome the absence of leading scorer Josh Carter because of foul trouble.
A Redell 3-pointer and a Trewhella three-point play a minute apart enabled Rockford to take a 64-60 lead, but Nauta answered with three free throws on one possession and a layup on another.
"We had trouble guarding Nauta," Majerle said. "He's pretty dang good."
Fortunately for the Rams, so is Redell.
He responded to Nauta's play with clutch foul shooting. Rockford fouled Redell quickly both times after Nauta scored, yet could not make him fold under the pressure. Redell was perfect from the line each time and upped the Rams' lead back up to three points. He produced all 10 of his points in the second half.
Redell was one of five Rockford players to finish in double figures. Trewhella and Derek Douglas shared team-high honors with 13 points apiece.
"Rockford is very good," Grand Haven coach Craig Taylor said after his team fell into a two-way tie for second place in the O-K Red with Holland. Both teams are two games behind the Rams.
"To me, they're like a Division III ballclub. I'd love watching them if I didn't have to play them. They're very, very hard to defend."
Rockford can defend, too. Especially Redell.
It was Redell's stinginess that was biggest in the end. When Grand Haven needed to free up its best perimeter player for a game-tying shot, it couldn't because of Redell. He met the challenge.
"I take pride in playing good defense and trying to lock up their best player," Redell said.