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Reckard, Woodley lift Devils
By ERIC FORTUNE
mcdonald
All week, Chris Kohl talked to his team about not letting Matt Seitz and Ken Greaver beat them.
It was a game plan that came close to working except for the fact that Brad Woodley and Jake Reckard came up big for McDonald in a 61-52 win over Kohl’s Mineral Ridge team in a Division IV sectional final Friday night.
“Give those two guys from McDonald credit,” Kohl said. “We talked all week that we weren’t going to let Seitz beat us. We’re not going to let Greaver beat us. If Woodley and Reckard are going to do it, so be it.
“Give Corey Phillips credit for being all over Seitz. A good team steps up, though. When you are left open, you have to make the shots and they did that.”
Reckard’s 17-point, 11-steal double-double came when the Blue Devils (20-3) were able to build out an 11-point advantage after three quarters. His steals helped turn back a 10-0 run by the Rams (14-10) to start the fourth quarter.
Woodley added 14 points. Seitz had 12 and Greaver was held to six.
“Jake’s an unique kid,” Rasile said. “He’s one of the better athletes we’ve had come through the system in years. The thing about Jake is that he is so unselfish that we almost have to tell him to shoot.
“His two walks were because he didn’t want to shoot. He wants to give it to the seniors and let them do their thing which is great, but in that situation we needed him.”
Early on, the game looked to be a continuation of what the Blue Devils did to the Rams back on Jan. 17 with a 23-point win.
But each time it seemed like the Blue Devils were poised to get some separation, the Rams made timely shots to stay within striking distance.
“It’s mostly about the press,” Reckard said. “The press doesn’t work the first quarter or the second quarter. A lot of times, it’s the fourth quarter. You start pulling away when other teams get tired. You have to dig deep.”
The Rams dominated on the offensive glass for multiple opportunities to score. They also limited the Blue Devils’ second-chance opportunities. Mineral Ridge outrebounded McDonald, 46-31.
“We really talked about going hard on the boards,” Kohl said. “We thought that if we really attacked them, that we might be able to get them into foul trouble. We knew Greaver was in a little bit of foul trouble. So our philosophy in the second half was to not back up and go right at them and take everything to the basket.”
Despite that glaring statistic, the Blue Devils still held a 31-24 advantage at the half and because of Reckard’s 10-point quarter built out an 11-point lead at 49-38 after three.
The Rams got back within a point at 49-48 midway through the fourth quarter, thanks to controlling the glass and running. It’s something the Blue Devils have managed to do quite well over the years.
But Reckard’s fourth-quarter steals helped McDonald close the game — and close out Mineral Ridge — with a 12-4 run.
“The box-outs at the end might have allowed us to get a break or two,” Rasile said. “My kids had to get their bodies on them and go get the ball. We didn’t do that in the second half.”