Lisle loses control in loss to Evergreen Park
The Lisle Lions may have learned a valuable lesson about speeding Tuesday night, that is that sometimes it's better to just slow down and stay calm.
When Evergreen Park picked up its man-to-man pressure defense in the second half, the Lions got a little rushed and rattled and after several turnovers, the Mustangs had pulled out a 63-55 defeat. The Lions had led the Thanksgiving tourney game 32-25 at the half and then 40-29 following a 3-pointer by Trevor Stitt before Evergreen Park's pressure got to the home team.
"I think we were just playing a little too fast. Too out of control," said Lisle senior Mark McGrath, who led all scorers with 17 points. "It seemed like we had 40 turnovers and that's usually not a formula for success."
The Lions (1-1) actually turned the ball over 31 times, including nine in the fourth quarter, which saw the Mustangs outscore Lisle 23-13 to pull out the win.
"I think right now we're playing like one second too fast," McGrath said. "It's me and it's the team as a whole. We just need to slow it down one second. We just need to be sharper in all facets, but mainly in taking care of the ball."
Lisle used a 16-4 advantage in the second quarter to take its 7-point lead at the half and flashed signs of greatness at times in the contest. Stitt finished with 16 points, Bryan O'Connell knocked down a pair of 3s while scoring 8 points in the first half, and Josh Jamison was strong on the boards while finishing with 7 points and 11 rebounds.
"When we were able to run what we do offensively I think we looked very sharp," Lions coach Mark LaScala said. "You have to give credit to Evergreen Park because in their run they completely took us out of what we do offensively."
Christian Cotton had 12 points and 6 steals off the bench for the Mustangs and Kyree Hannah tallied 11 points on a trio of 3s in the second half to finish with 16.
"When we got into our offensive sets we looked really sharp," LaScala said of the Lions' offense. "But once they got into their run our kids got a little edgy; a little fidgety. I think that's something that as the season goes on we'll be able to cure."
The Lions did an admirable job on Evergreen Park's 6-foot-10 Mike Drynan, who managed 10 points and 10 rebounds while playing much of the night in foul trouble.
LaScala saw plenty of good things on the court, but knows that this year's veteran group expects to win, not just battle.
"There were a lot of positives and when we see the film we'll appreciate those more," he said. "But it's a senior dominated group and these kids want more than moral victories.
"They have a lot of proud and you could tell they were disappointed with their effort and they feel like they should have beaten them. But the storyline was their man-to-man took us out of our game in crunchtime."