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Lawrence battles back

LAWRENCE — After watching Andover rain three-pointers the better part of three quarters, Lawrence first revved up its pressure then slammed its way into another Merrimack Valley Conference victory.

The athletic Lancers trailed by as many as 16 early in the second, but not only turned around the situation but also ran away with a 72-60 victory over the visiting Golden Warriors.

It was all Andover early as Emmett Kim had his shooting stroke working smoothly. The junior guard drained each of his four three-point attempts in the opening period and all six of his first-half deep shots as he scored 21 points in the opening 11 minutes. As a team, the Golden Warriors were 10 of 13 from behind the arc and 17 of 34 overall the first half.

"Andover was making shots," said Lawrence coach Raymond Nunez, summing up his Lancers' first-half woes.

Andover (1-3 MVC, 3-4 overall) grabbed its biggest lead with 5:19 left in the half on a three from Kyle Rocker, who finished with 20 points. While Andover was finding the bottom of the net, Lawrence had eight turnovers in the opening period which stymied momentum.

However, not only did Lawrence throttle back Kim, who missed all four of his second-half shots, it quickly dominated the young Golden Warriors. Forcing turnovers on seven of Andover's final 10 possessions of the second, the Lancers closed to within six.

Lawrence (3-0, 7-1) took the lead for good on a put back by Luis Reynoso with 1:03 left in the third for a 51-50 advantage.

 "We didn't do much different (defensively against Kim). We just picked up the intensity. To win games and win championships, you have to defend. We have a great group of guys who are athletic."

As the Lancers defense continued it's half-court pressure in the fourth, forcing seven turnovers the first 5 minutes and igniting the Lawrence fast break. Taking advantage were Luis Reynoso (2) and Juan Felix Rodriguez, who combined for three slams off steals.

"We just started playing more defense, and staying together," said Chris Ruiz, who came off the bench for six points including a second-period dunk of his own. "That's what's going to win games. Those (slams) makes us play harder because everyone wants to get on the fast break and get in on it."

Juan Felix Rodriguez, the reigning Eagle-Tribune, MVP finished with a game-high 25 points and five assists, while junior Luis Reynoso added 21, including six on dunks, and Christian Kinsley chipped in with 12 on four field goals.

"At the beginning of the year, his shooting was a little bit off, but I keep passing it to him because I have confidence in him," Rodriguez said of his Kingsley.

Kim and Rocker combined for 41 of Andover's 61, but the duo had only seven after intermission.

"We're young and we're tough," Andover coach Dave Fazio said. "But we have to learn (what to do) when guys are grabbing and holding you. We have to get stronger and we have to get more basketball savvy.

"But I'll tell you, my kids played great. We played tough in a tough environment against a whole bunch of talented kids. We didn't back down, and I'm thrilled where we're going."

Christian Kinsley played a big part of the comeback, with a three from the baseline off a feed from sixth-man Chris Ruiz. It was the first of three treys for Kinsley in the final five minutes of the period. The senior guard scored all of his 12 points on four second-half field goals.