GENOA – Genoa-Kingston coach Corey Jenkins said his young basketball team struggled to create shots against a trapping Richmond-Burton team Wednesday in a 55-40 loss to the Rockets.
“We weren’t dribbling with a purpose,” Jenkins said. “We weren’t getting into attack mode. I think if we do that, better things happen.”
The Rockets (7-5) spent most of the second half leading between six and 14 points. The Cogs (5-8) got the lead – once 30-14 in the second quarter – down to 38-32 with 4:59 left after a 3-pointer by Nate Nesler.
The Rockets (7-5) spent most of the second half with a lead of between six and 14 points. The Cogs (5-8) cut the lead – once at 16 in the second quarter – down to 38-32 with 4:59 left after a 3-pointer by Nate Nesler.
But Richmond-Burton scored nine of the next 13 points to boost the lead to 11 with 1:32 to go, scoring on a combination of layups and free throws to secure the win.
“Our defensive pressure led to easy baskets, and we just ran in transition,” said Richmond-Burton forward Jeff Jankowski, who finished 12 of 16 from the field for 26 points. “We were finishing around the basket, so at halftime we said let’s attack, let’s go to the basket. Let’s go with it.”
Even with the inside shot selection, the Rockets shot 47 percent from the floor and only 2 of 13 from long range.
R-B coach Brandon Creason said the Rockets did a good job of maintaining the lead despite the cold spells at times.
“We missed a lot of easy opportunities, and what we did a good job of was not letting that dictate our play,” Creason said. “When you miss a lot of easy baskets, kids can get down and everything can fall apart. I thought we did a good job of responding to things. We had a lot bunnies that just didn’t go in. I’m happy with our effort.”
Michael Trzynka led the Cogs with 10 points, Nesler had nine and Jayson Szczepanski had eight.
On the other end of the trap, Szczepanski was open under the bucket throughout the night, but the Cogs were unable to get him the ball.
“We wanted to throw the ball up in the air to him,” Jenkins said. “We missed it a few times. I think Nesler lobbed one into him, and it was a nice look. We wanted to do more of that, but unfortunately we couldn’t get it down there.”
By the numbers: Kyle Townsend had 10 points for the Rockets. Shane Byrne led R-B with six rebounds, and Szczepanski had six boards for the Cogs.
Beyond the stats: The Cogs led for 14 seconds in the game after Nesler hit a 3-pointer with 4:32 left in the first quarter to go up 5-4. Luke Uhwat answered with a layup with 4:18 left, and the Rockets never trailed again.
They said it: “Jeff [Jankowski] has talent,” Creason said. “We’re on him and we want him to be better. He played well.”
Up next: The Rockets head to Palatine on Friday, while the Cogs head to Sandwich on Friday.