Sharp-dressed Leyden turns up defensive pressure, blows out Maine West to improve to 9-2
With less than week left before Christmas, Leyden coach Bill Heisler and his staff chose to get themselves into a pre-holiday festive mode by donning holiday sweaters for their Tuesday evening nonconference game in Franklin Park with Maine West.
Judging by their team's dominant performance in a 67-38 win on Norm Goodman Court that raised its mark to 9-2, he and his staff may want to keep wearing them throughout the season.
The Eagles built a 12-0 lead to start the contest thanks to 6-foot-1 senior forward Michael Medious connecting on four consecutive charity tosses followed by senior teammate Drelyn Jones scoring eight of his game-high 16 over nearly the first seven minutes of the game.
Maine West (1-8) would respond by going on an 11-5 run. Senior guard Anthony Sanchez nailed back-to-back triples which pulled the Warriors within 17-11 at the 4:55 mark of the second.
It was at that moment when the home team once again turned on their hoop machine. They went on a decisive 14-0 surge capped by a Medious layup off a Jack Tinajero feed just before the halftime horn to make it a 31-11 Eagles edge.
The edge was one that both Heisler and Jones credited to a relentless pressure defense by Leyden's starting five: Jones, Medious, seniors Israel Rodriguez and Szymon Wojtasik, and junior Nic Gattuso. They forced more turnovers (13) in the first 16 minutes than field goal attempts (11).
"I thought the big thing for us was that all five of us were really synchronizing our movement," Heisler said. "It's something that when we do that it looks a lot better. We got lazy and they got a few (baskets) late, but I thought overall all five (starters) were making multiple efforts and really synchronizing our movement (which) was really good tonight."
"We just got them where we wanted them," said Jones, who added 5 steals and 3 rebounds to the winning effort.
"We just trapped them in spots where we wanted them and forced them into making passes they didn't want to and that just got us (going) in the game."
Rodriguez added 15 points for the hosts followed by Medious with 14 along with 5 rebounds as the top-seeded Eagles face Round Lake next Wednesday morning to commence the Maine East Holiday Tournament.
Sanchez's 9 points paced the visitors who return to Central Suburban play with a trip to Niles West Friday before facing Glenbrook North in opening round action at Wheeling next Wednesday.
"We didn't take care of the basketball," Maine West coach Dan Paxton said of his squad which shot 14-32 (43%) from the floor while committing 20 turnovers.
"We got only two shot attempts in the first quarter. Our guys show patience and we're plodding, trying to find a great look (at the basket). But during that process we’ve got to take care of the basketball. Hats off to Leyden. They got deflections which they turned into steals and it's just (the fact) we didn't take care of the basketball."