↓ TROJANS HOLD OFF HAWKS

By: Matthew A. Anderson

In an emotional night at Saginaw High, the Trojans did what most expected in several aspects. They used their press to wreak havoc on Heritage, creating double digit leads and they also used some of that patented poise that Coach Dawkins brings upon this team when the going got rough. Early in the 2nd half it looked as if Saginaw High was going to run Heritage out of the gym, going on a 14-0 run to stretch a 12-10 lead into a 26-10 advantage with about 6 minutes remaining in the half. Heritage did a great job of slowing the momentum after that and managed to gain some traction before the 1st half had ended, cutting the lead to 10 at 32-22.

Heritage was doing a pretty good job of getting past the press but they were having all kinds of trouble in the half-court and were giving up a lot of 2nd chance opportunities to Saginaw High. You mix that in with trouble at the free throw line and the Hawks were lucky to be down only 10. Saginaw High was having some trouble of their own, simply missing a lot of shots and trying to speed things up too fast at times. It had opening game written all over it because this it what happens in the early season. Both teams also got better and more disciplined as the game drew on. The thing I was most impressed with was how well Saginaw High 'made up' gaps between the ball handler and potential shooters. If they did not create a turnover with the press, their defense immediately caught back up to their respective counterparts. That was a big reason for Heritage's trouble in the half-court.

It seemed every time in the 2nd half, when Saginaw High would threaten to pull away, Heritage would grind out a stop or get a basket to keep the Trojans within arm's length. After three quarters however, Heritage still lost 2 more points throughout the third and were looking straight down the barrel of a 12 point deficit with only 8 minutes and 1 quarter to go.

Slowly but surely, Heritage methodically chipped away at the lead and with 23 seconds to go in the game, had cut the lead to 63-60. Heritage would not score again however and Saginaw High split the pair on two trips to the line to ice the game and pull out the 65-60 win.

Tommie McCune led the Trojans with a double-double, 14 points and 10 boards. Greg Hayes and Evellis McGee had 11 and 10 points respectively. For Heritage, AJ Thomas had 17 to lead all scorers, Chris Jones, 14 and Lavario Smith with 13 points and 14 rebounds. Smith was a monster down low and he had to be to bang bodies with the rotating platoon of 'Bigs' down low for Saginaw High.

Both teams have high expectations but on almost two different levels because of history and in two different ways. Heritage is a veteran laded team with experience, talent and a very good coach. A team that is supposed to contend for the SVL title. Saginaw High however, has experience but are still very young and raw at spots. Tommie McCune, Greg Hayes and Evellis McGee along with DeAnthony Arnett are experienced but for the most part, the team is young. That is a telling tale however. You can just tell as the season goes on, that this team is going to get better, more fine tuned, which if all goes to plan, will be improving their game in late March as well. Then of course, you have Coach Lou Dawkins, arguably the best coach in the state of Michigan, who has a mission to lead this young men back to East Lansing and with a purpose greater than ever due to the tragedy this summer.

The team came out with new uniforms, with jerseys inscribed with the initials DD for the late Dorian Dawkins. By now everyone knows the story and what DD means to this team and staff and the community, so I'm not going to delve into it any further, except for this. When I looked over at Coach Dawkins tonight on the bench, you could tell that it was on his mind before the game, it always will be, there's no question. What was great to see however, when the game tipped off, it didn't take long for Coach Dawkins to get right back into championship form, barking out calls, getting on the players he needed to, to motivate them and praising them when they deserved it. After-all, I'm sure this is what Dorian wants, as he watches and cheers with the best seat in the house ...

For a complete round-up of tonight's hoop's action, including the FULL PHOTO GALLERY from tonight's big game, be sure to visit our blog @ the Legends247 by clicking on a link below.

Check out tonight's Boy's Hardwood wrapUP @ The Legends247 Blog here. The Boy's Basketball wrapUP for Friday, December 11th, 2009

Check out tonight's Girl's Hardwood wrapUP @ The Legends247 Blog here. The Girl's Basketball wrapUP for Friday, December 11th, 2009