Civic Memorial Technical A Factor In Loss To Jersey Friday
Jackson made the pass that led to Shalley's three-point play, and in the first half, he was a key factor for Jersey with 12 points, despite the Eagles leading 21-18 at halftime. The Panthers led after three quarters 31-27, but CM, coming off of a big 41-40 overtime win over Roxana the previous night, hung in, and kept within striking distance before Shalley's three-point play sealed the game for Jersey.
The game-winning play happened in the final seconds, when Jackson, holding the ball in order to draw a foul, instead saw Shalley cutting into towards the basket, and threw a centimeter-perfect pass to Shalley, who laid the ball in and was fouled on the play. Shalley converted the free throw to make the score 45-40 for Jersey, clinching the game.
Things started out even, and the game may have changed near the end of the third quarter when CM's Keaton Loewen was called for a technical foul that helped the Panthers take a 31-27 lead after three. "I heard what was said, and it was a well-deserved technical, but yeah, that was a big play for us", said Jersey head coach Stote Reeder, "but our attitude a little bit got better, our offensive attitude got better, we were much more aggressive in transition; we got nothing in transition in the first half, so that was the key. Matthew carried us the first half."
The play that Jackson made to Shalley at the end was a great example of how the Panthers performed in the second half. "We made plays in the second half, and Tucker woke up in the second half and got us out in transition," Reeder said. "He's really hard to guard in transition."
The Eagles got into a bit of foul trouble early on, but were able to play well, but in the third quarter made a big difference in the game. "Third quarter, we came out, and we were kind of rough," said CM head coach Jared Reynolds. "We couldn't hit much, we were settling for outside shots when I wanted them to. We wanted to kind of force them to come out and guard us a little more, because I thought we had some mismatches. Once they came out, we could get around them, and then, maybe get some separation at the rim, and their big guys would be a little slow getting there."
The technical against Loewen hurt the Eagles in the long run. "The technical obviously speaks for itself",Reynolds said. "That hurt us a lot. That was a big momentum changer, and I don't want to say it's the reason we lost, but it is a big contributing factor."
Trey Hall led the Eagles with 11 points, while Alex Reams had 10 points and Noah Turbyfil added nine. Shalley had 15 points for the Panthers.
The Panthers are now 13-10 and have a big week ahead, starting with a game at Carrollton on Monday night, then two important MVC games, hosting Triad on Tuesday, then on the road at Mascoutah Feb. 14. Jersey then plays in a shootout at Teutopolis Feb. 15.
The Eagles are now 7-17, and play on Monday against Father McGivney Catholic, on Tuesday against Mascoutah and Rochester next Saturday, Feb. 15.
