Huge 1st half propels Jefferson
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
Jefferson junior forward Bryce Deen scrambles for a loose ball with a pair of North Harrison players in Tuesday night’s 65-31 win over the Shamrocks.
The rare four-point play gave Jefferson all the momentum it would need in Tuesday night’s 65-31 win over North Harrison.
Trailing 7-4 with 4:36 remaining in the first quarter, senior guard Jason Sullivan knocked down a three-pointer and was fouled, giving the Eagles an 8-7 lead.
“I thought (Jason) had a really good night,” Jefferson head coach Tim Jermain said. “He really did some things aggressively and shot the ball well, but obviously that was momentum that went in our favor.”
That play jump-started an 11-0 run by the Eagles which included another three-pointer from Sullivan, who scored 11 first quarter points, and helped them to a 15-7 advantage before North Harrison’s Reed Hallock put an end to it with a free throw with 2:26 to play in the quarter.
Just before the buzzer, sophomore guard Michael Burch tipped a rebound to junior forward Bryce Deen to give Jefferson a 24-13 lead at the end of the first stanza.
The Eagles scored the first 11 points of the second quarter — including a pair of three-pointers from the left corner by Burch — as well to stretch the lead to 35-13 before a pair of free throws by North Harrison senior Blake Emig halted the spurt.
The Jefferson press, however, wasn’t backing down. North Harrison connected on a pair of long passes to beat it in the first quarter, but didn’t have as much luck in the second.
“We kind of challenged them that our defense had to be better,” Jermain said. “We’ve played against some really athletic teams here lately and I think we were a little hesitant to get up there (in the press), but I thought we did a lot better job in the second quarter.
“That’s the pass we want them to throw (the long pass). We did a better job in the second quarter of rotating and getting that pass.”
After Emig’s free throws, the Eagles pieced together another 11-0 run, allowing Jermain to get a few of his younger players into the game earlier than normal. Emig again ended the streak with a buzzer-beating layup to end the half with the Eagles holding a 46-17 advantage.
“It was good for us to get a lot of those kids that haven’t got a lot of playing time because of some of those (close) games because they come to practice every day and work really hard and that helps us,” Jermain said. “To get them in the game tonight was a nice thing.”
After North Harrison scored the first two points of the second half, Jefferson ripped off the next eight points.
North Harrison responded with seven straight points, its first sustained run since the opening minutes of the contest before Burch’s third triple of the night put an end to the Shamrocks’ spurt.
With the clock running the fourth quarter, Jefferson scored the first six points to finish off their 12th win of the season, bouncing back from consecutive losses to end the North Platte Invitational.
Sullivan led the Eagles with 18 points while Deen finished with 11 and Burch added nine on his three triples.
“We’ve been really fortunate to have different people at different times have good games, but if we can ever have a night where it’s all clicking, that’s what our goal is,” Jermain said.
The Eagles (12-8) return to the court at 7:30 p.m. Friday against Osborn at Jefferson High School.
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
Jefferson junior forward Corby Walker puts a shot up after being fouled on his way to the hoop in the Eagles’ 65-31 win over North Harrison Tuesday night.
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
Jefferson junior guard Jason Sullivan finishes with the left hand in transition in the first half of the Eagles’ 65-31 win over North Harrison Tuesday night in Conception Junction.
