Peoria Manual's defense disarms Warren
PONTIAC - Warren discovered the hard way why Peoria Manual is the only program in Illinois history to win four consecutive state titles.
"Manual basketball starts at the defensive end of the court," Manual coach Derrick Booth said.
The Rams' punishing man-to-man defense was inescapably evident, and Warren had few solutions to its destructiveness.
Warren lost the turnover battle decisively and fell to 2-7 on the boys basketball season as Manual prevailed 58-43 Monday morning in opening-round action of the Pontiac Holiday Tournament.
For the first time this decade Warren was thrown into the consolation bracket of the double-elimination tournament; the Devils face Bloomington, which fell to Oak Park-River Forest on Monday morning.
Jeremiah Jackson and Nathan Boothe had back-to-back first-quarter putbacks to give Warren its lone lead at 4-2.
But Manual (8-3) was unrelenting on the defensive end, forcing Warren into 16 first-half turnovers; the Devils only managed an equal number of shots during the first half, which ended with Manual holding a 24-16 lead.
Manual opened the second half with a 12-3 burst, and Warren never came within double digits again.
Losing possession in a variety of ways, Warren ended with 31 turnovers, compared to 13 for Manual.
"We didn't take care of the ball," Warren coach Chuck Ramsey said. "We got beat repeatedly to loose balls."
But there was some encouraging news for the program.
Jackson and Jameris Smith returned to the fold after missing much of the month with injuries.
Jackson was particularly impressive against Manual in the defensive-oriented first half.
The junior transfer from Simeon had game highs of 13 points, 10 rebounds and 6 blocked shots.
"I kept my eyes on the ball at all times," Jackson said.
Even with a 37-25 plurality in rebounds, Warren could not overcome the Rams' tenacious defense.
"(They were) pressing and trapping, double-teaming the ball," said Jackson.
Warren entered the tournament after winning the title for the first time last year.
The contrasting styles of play that are a linchpin of the hallowed tournament was not lost on Booth.
"When you're playing against Warren, you're not necessarily playing against players but against a system," Booth said. "We knew coming in what we were expecting. We got (the Devils) out of their comfort zone."
In nearly 20 minutes of action, Smith scored 7 points to complement Jackson.
"We were glad to have him back," Ramsey said.
Kendall Harris (6 points) was the only other player to have more than 4 points for Warren, which was 17-for-45 from the field to finish at a 38-percent clip.
David Jackson-Russell and Andrew Jordan paced the Rams' balanced attack with 11 and 10 points.