Warren defense rules in win over Zion-Benton
During practice this week for the Warren boys basketball team, the emphasis has been defense.
One particular drill, called the long arm, had a particular effect on Blue Devils junior Jameris Smith.
In the drill, the defender extends his arm in order to best take and intercept or knock down a pass. The drill worked as Smith and the Blue Devils extended the long arm of the law on defense against host Zion-Benton in a North Suburban Conference Lake Division opener for both teams Friday night.
The Devils were downright stingy on defense, allowing a measly 14 first-half points and 25 through three quarters. The defense helped lead to good offense as Warren rolled to an impressive 65-48 win over the host Zee-Bees.
“Coach (Bill) Werly got on me in practice during that drill,” said Smith, who contributed 7 assists and 4 steals coming off the bench. “I just tried to use what I learned to get in the passing lane and force turnovers.”
Smith entered the game early in the second quarter and his impact was immediate. He stole the ball on three successive Zion possessions and dished out assists to JoVaughn Gaines, Taylor Erbach and Darius Paul, who led the Devils with 16 points.
With the defense locking down the Zion offense, the Warren offense got into high gear. The Blue Devils shot a blistering 18-for-28 from the floor in the first two quarters to build a 41-14 halftime edge.
“I thought Jameris made some big plays for us tonight,” said Warren coach Chuck Ramsey. “We really try and get our offense from our defense, and I felt like we did a good job of that tonight.”
The Blue Devils (3-1, 1-0) blew the game open midway through the second quarter. An 18-5 spurt helped build a 36-9 advantage with three minutes left in the first half. Brandon Ferguson keyed the runm scoring 6 of his 12 points during that stretch.
“I think you have to give Warren a lot of credit,” said Zee-Bees coach Don Kloth. “Their play frustrated us and we had some trouble executing like Warren did. Warren executed very well in the first half.”
Zion (4-2, 0-1) was able to get back to a more reasonable deficit in the fourth quarter thanks to a 15-2 burst. Owen Worthington led the charge and the Bees in scoring with 13 points.
To go with Paul’s game-best 16 points, Erbach added 11 off the bench including three straight 3-pointers during a 9-point second quarter for the senior. Brandon Ferguson added a dozen, while Nathan Boothe chipped in with 10 points and 5 boards.