Tue, Feb 27, 2018
07:00 PM @
Lawrence
| Team |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Final |
| Andover |
10 |
17 |
20 |
8 |
55 |
| Lawrence |
20 |
23 |
15 |
17 |
75 |
Lawrence roughs up Andover in opener
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Tuesday, February, 27
By Jeff Hamrick
LAWRENCE — Juan Felix Rodriquez wasn’t smiling when he stated he and his Lawrence teammates definitely will improve.
And that type of resolve should alarm any of the possible five opponents in Lawrence’s road to a possible Division 1 state basketball title.
With the Rodriguez leading the way with a season-high 37 points, the second seeded Lancers made short work of No. 15 Andover on Tuesday night, running away with a 75-55 victory in the first round of the Division 1 North sectional.
Often times the road to the North finals or at least semis is a relatively easy one for a powerhouse like Lawrence.
Not this year.
The win sends Lawrence (19-2) into the quarters, where they will play host to No. 7 St. John’s Prep on a date to be announced. In late December, the Prep downed the Lancers 97-92 in OT in a Commonwealth Motors Christmas Tourney semifinal classic.
“We just wanted to win,” said Rodriquez, who was 10 of 16 from the field. “There were people talking about how we were going to lose, and that got us motivated to keep going.
“We need to work hard and get better as a team. Of course, we can get better. We just have to trust ourselves.”
The Lancers, who have won 10 straight while averaging 77.3 points in that stretch, took the lead for good at 4-2 on a Rodriguez putback 48 seconds in. The lead was 10 by the end of the first period and when Chris Ruiz nailed a step-back three-pointer 79 seconds into the second quarter, the Lancers led by 15.
“A lot of it was (Lawrence) might say forced turnovers, but I might say unforced turnovers,” said Andover coach David Fazio, who’s squad committed 10 of its 17 turnovers in a first half. “It was just turnovers and uncontested layups on the other end. On the board (in the locker room) we put down five keys and (all five) were take care of the ball.”
Rodriguez, who had 20 at intermission, wasn’t the only Lancer feeling it. Luis Reynoso and Chris Ruiz each contributed nine points in the first half as Lawrence converted 16 of its 28 field-goal attempts.
“The guys have said all year, that once we have the energy, we rebound and defend,” Lawrence coach Raymond Nunez said. “That gets us out on the break and really helps the guys out. Defense is the key, and the guys know it and have mentioned it.”
That was evident in the third quarter after Andover closed to within 11 points. The Lancers forced turnovers on three consecutive Golden Warrior possessions resulting in two Reynoso fastbreak layups and another by Ruiz.
“We knew we needed to come out of the box fast, and we just didn’t make shots or make plays,” said Fazio, whose club finished 11-11 including the Christmas Tourney loss to St. John’s (the MIAA doesn’t count that). “Their speed and athleticism make them pretty talented kids.”
Andover did cut its deficit to nine on a Colin Kirkpatrick three early in the fourth, but Lawrence made four of its first six shots in the frame to once again open its advantage to 22 at 75-53 with 3 minutes remaining.
Andover senior Cedric Gillette scored a team-high 16 points while Kyle Rocker and Kirkpatrick added 12 and 11, respectively.
Ruiz finished with 18 and Reynoso chipped in 13 as the Lancers’ Big 3 combined for 68.
Now the Lancers look to finish off St. John’s Prep (16-5) in a way they couldn’t at the Commonwealth Motors Christmas Classic, when the Eagles rallied from eight points down with just over 3 minutes remaining to force overtime. The Prep defeated Malden 81-64 in Tuesday action.
“It’s going to be one practice at a time; one game at a time,” Nunez said. “We have to take care of the smaller things when it comes to defending, rebounding and ball movement on the offensive end.”
Game Statistics:
Division 1 North First Round
Andover (55): Kyle Rocker 4 4-8 12, Stephen Shaw 4 0-1 8, Cedric Gillette 5 4-4 16, Emmett Kim 3 1-2 8, Michael Slayton 0 0-0 0, Colin Kirkpatrick 4 1-2 11, Kevin Flowers 0 0-0 0, Charlie McCarthy 0 0-0 0, TJ Jayasinghe 0 0-0 0, Shamus Florio 0 0-0 0, Rishi Srinivasan 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 10-17 55
Lawrence (75): Juan Felix Rodriguez 10 13-18 37, Christian Kinsley 0 0-1 0, Jaden Castillo 2 0-0 4, Sebastian Dilone 0 0-0 0, Luis Reynoso 5 3-4 13, Miguel Camacho 1 0-0 3, Chris Ruiz 7 2-3 18, Angel Vazquez 0 0-0 0, Brandon Goris 0 0-0 0, Erick Garcia 0 0-0 0, Malik Bain 0 0-0 0, Gabriel Zorilla 0 0-0 0, Brian Martir 0 0-0 0. Totals 25 18-26 75
3-pointers: AND — Gillette 2, Kirkpatrick 2, Kim; LAW — Rodriguez 4, Ruiz 2, Camacho
