Jefferson ousts Crystal Lake South
Quickness and 3-point shooting accuracy.
Top-seeded Rockford Jefferson possessed those attributes in posting a 57-44 victory over third-seeded Crystal Lake South in the championship game of the Class 4A Crystal Lake South regional Friday night at Gator Alley.
The J-Hawks (22-7) advance to the Boylan sectional where they will play Bartlett Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. Bartlett claimed its own regional title with a 66-61 win over Upstate Eight Conference foe South Elgin.
Jefferson, which forced 22 Gator turnovers converted 8 of the miscues into layup baskets.
The J-Hawks were 6-of-10 from 3-point range for 60 percent. Sophomore Latterion Davis buried 4-of-5 from beyond the arc in scoring 20 points, 18 in the first three quarters.
"Our game all season is beating teams with our quickness and getting easy baskets," said Jefferson coach Todd Brannon. "We wanted to play up tempo tonight because Crystal Lake was bigger and longer. We didn't want a slug it out game against them on their home court. We got some good looks on 3s and made a high percentage of them. Latterion had a great game. He didn't play like a sophomore."
The Gators (15-12) were within 1 of the J-Hawks, 30-29, after a layup by Alex Macaulay with 4:06 left in the third quarter. Jefferson seized control of the game with a 10-0 run to end the quarter. Davis buried a pair of 3s, Mario Manns canned a 12-footer in the lane and Mike Chisamore had a putback as the J-Hawks extended a 1-point lead to 11, 40-29, after 24 minutes of play.
The Gators sliced the lead to 6, 42-36, after a 3 by Ethan Breitenstein with 3:34 left but couldn't get any closer.
For Jefferson, Marcus Marshall backed up Davis with 13 points, 5 steals and 5 assists and Chisamore scored 9 with a 3-pointer. The J-Hawks made 6-of-6 from the free throw line in the final minute, 4 by Jermarkus Lovett and 2 from Marshall.
Macaulay, the lone senior for the Gators, led the way with 11 points and 6 boards. Junior center Tyler Dawson added 10 points with 8 rebounds.
"My guys gave tremendous effort for 32 minutes," said South coach Dan DeBruycker. "Jefferson wore us down with their quickness and they hit some 3s. Their guards got to the rim and their pressure forced us into way too many turnovers."