Thursday, December 29, 2011
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Lowellville’s Drew McLaughlin, front, fights for a loose ball with Springfield’s Eoghan Bees during the first quarter Wednesday in New Middletown. The Tigers won, 67-36.
By LOWELL SPENCER
New Middletown
The Springfield Tigers roared loud and clear on Wednesday night as they rolled convincingly past their rivals from Lowellville 67-36.
Led by senior guard Ron Rogers, the Tigers jumped out to a commanding 29-10 halftime lead, and they rode that early momentum throughout the second half, never letting the Rockets get into any rhythm.
“Ronnie’s a three-year starter for me. He knows what we expect from him, he is just consistent every game and he is a tough kid to guard because he can do so many different things. He’s one of the most versatile kids in the league,” Tigers coach Eric Fender said.
Rogers scored 27 points, many from inside the paint while also hitting three 3-pointers and going a perfect 4-for-4at the charity line. He also dominated defensively as the Rockets were forced to take a lot of shots from the perimeter.
“I missed a couple 3s, but I figured if I drive in and get to the free throw line I could finish from there. We just knew we had to come in and win. Coach Fender said we were 0-2 against them [Lowellville] the past couple of years, so we knew we had to win,” Rogers said.
Lowellville coach Mike Mangine said he thought his team was in awe of Springfield’s size.
“We need to move the ball around and we need to penetrate, pass and rotate the ball fast enough because we are little,” he said. “We’re not big people, and they managed to keep us on the outside. Our guys didn’t want to penetrate the 3-point line tonight; I think we were intimidated by their size.”
Nick Russell added 10 points while blocking several shots for the Tigers (6-1), and Joe Ohlin came off the bench to add another 10 points.
Dean Donatelli led the Rockets (5-3) with 11 points, all in the second half.
“It was a good game for us. Lowellville is a good team; they are going to give themselves a chance to win the ITCL Lower Tier. They came in and competed hard,” Fender said.
“Springfield’s a good team; they’ve got a lot of senior leadership, big athletic guys,” said Mangine. “But I’m not sure it’s everything they did right tonight, and all the things we didn’t do. We didn’t put any pressure on them on defense; we didn’t handle their pressure well.”