Newark's Keshawn Heard hits a jumper in Wildcats' 74-37 win over Lancaster. Tom Wilson/Eagle-Gazette
LANCASTER - For a quarter and a half, Lancaster seemed to do whatever it wanted, offensively, against visiting Newark. The Golden Gales were getting layups and wide-open looks from 3-point range.
With three minutes left in the first half, Lancaster trailed 22-21. However, knowing his team needed a spark, Newark coach Jeff Quackenbush turned the Wildcats loose and had them apply more pressure at half-court, and what transpired the rest of the way was a dominating performance.
Newark finished the first half on a 13-3 run, and from that four-minute mark in the first half, the Wildcats outscored Lancaster 53-16 the rest of the way as they cruised to a 74-37 nonconference victory. It was Newark’s 12th consecutive victory.
“Defensively, to start the game we weren’t very good,” Quackenbush said. “We gave them two or three layups and they do a great job screening and getting the ball side to side and getting you to chase your guy. “We started picking them up and trying to trap them a little because they were just working the ball around a getting the shots they wanted.
“We had to do something to get our kids going and maybe take them off what they wanted to do. I thought our ball pressure on the ball is what bothered them the most.”
Lancaster coach Kent Riggs was pleased with the way his team played early on, but knew it would be tough once the Wildcats turned up the pressure, defensively.
“Defensively, they put a lot of pressure on you, and like I told the guys before the game, you can handle it for eight minutes, you can handle it for 12, 14, 20 minutes, but they are going to make you handle it the whole game and give them credit, they got us to turn the ball over. “We had 20 turnovers, and a lot of those were run-outs and we can’t guard that – a steal and a score. They changed the game on the defensive end.
“We guarded them pretty good when we had them slowed up, but you just can’t turn the ball over and give them easy buckets. There pressure just took us out of everything we wanted to run.”
Newark (13-2) scored 23 points off turnovers, and senior guard Antonio Watson created several of those with steals and turning them into layups. He wreaked havoc on the Gales with his quick hands. He finished with seven steals to go along with his game-high 24 points. It marked the third game in a row that he has scored over 20 points or more and the second game in a row with 24 points.
“(Watson) has had some big-time games here of late,” Quackenbush said. “In these last three games, I think that’s what happens when people start concentrating on J.T. (Shumate). They are leaving Antonio in some space and I think he is feeling a little more comfortable and just playing.
“When he gets the ball in the open court, just go play, we aren’t going to stop you, and I thought he was 10 time better tonight than has been all year.”
Shumate, the Wildcats’ leading scorer, struggled somewhat, going 8-of-20 from the field, but he still finished with 18 points and nine rebounds, including six offensive boards.
Newark also dominated the glass by outrebounding Lancaster 33-19, and the Wildcats shot 50 percent from the field for the game, hitting 31-of-62 shots.
Lancaster led 11-10 at the end of the first quarter. Jaycob England scored six points and Dominic Boring had five. Austin Gootee hit back-to-back 3-pointers to keep the Gales within striking distance in the second quarter, and he had a nice pass to Nick Scott for a layup that closed the gap to 22-21.
However, from that point on, it was all Newark. During the Wildcats 13-3 closing run in the first half, five different players – Kade Bradford, Watson, Keshawn Heard, Bryson Allen-Glover and Shumate – all scored.
Heading into the fourth quarter, the Wildcats led 35-24 and then outscored the Gales 23-2 in the fourth quarter. Heard finished with eight points and seven rebounds and All-Glover also had eight points for the Wildcats.
Newark hasn’t lost since Dec. 12 at Reynoldsburg, and the Wildcats will travel to play Franklin Heights on Friday. Newark’s current winning streak started when they defeated the Falcons on Dec. 15.
Gootee led Lancaster with 13 points and three assists, Boring had eight and England six.
twilson@lancastereaglegazette.com
740-681-4358
Twitter: @twil2323
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