Second Half Key In Grace Opener
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
WINONA LAKE - He didn't really say much afterward about what he told his team at halftime, but whatever veteran Grace College men's basketball coach Jim Kessler said worked.
"I basically told them to get after it," said Kessler, whose Lancers opened up the season Wednesday evening by beating the visiting Judson College Eagles 89-63.
Grace trailed 39-38 at halftime but came out of the locker room a completely different team, a more inspired team.
Grace started the second half with a 14-2 run and outscored Judson 51-24 in the final 20 minutes of play as Kessler picked up his 489th coaching win in the first game of his 28th season with the Lancers.
"We went to a two-three zone because we couldn't stop anybody," said Kessler. "Then we made a real nice run with three rookies on the floor. Some people stepped up and our post players did a better job earning some respect in the post."
The Lancers made just 14 of 28 (50 percent) shots from the field in the first half, but came back and made good on 22 of 35 shot attempts (62.9 percent) in the second half.
Grace made six steals in the first half Wednesday evening. The Lancers came out with a higher intensity on defense in the second half and made 14 steals after the intermission and converted them into 21 points.
There were still signs of it being Grace's first game, namely some easy buckets given up in the paint, but without question the second half was a completely different effort.
"All in all, I'm pretty pleased," said Kessler, whose Lancers overcame a 17-point halftime deficit on the road a year ago, and who own a 5-0 all-time record against the Eagles after Wednesday's 26-point win. "Judson came out with a lot of enthusiasm. They've got a lot of young players, too. Our young kids stepped up the next rung."
While Grace does return experienced players in seniors Andrew Kipsey, Tim Bailey, Kevin Stuckmeyer and Joe Saunders, a lot of preseason talk was about the Lancers' recruiting class.
Twins Marcus and Scott Moore, both listed on the roster at 6-foot-2, led Columbia City to a 65-9 record their final three seasons of high school, including a run to the 4A state finals as seniors.
Kyle Johnson, a 6-7 Grace recruit, led Jimtown to a 25-2 record and the 2A state championship as a senior.
Of the 12 Grace players who got playing time Wednesday evening, it may have been Johnson who turned around his game the most in the second half.
Coming off the bench in the first half, Johnson was timid at times and passed the ball rather than looking to score.
He took just one shot in the first half.
After a strong second-half performance off the bench, Johnson finished the game 4 of 5 from the field, 2 of 3 from the free throw line, scoring 10 points to go with his seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
"He knows what it takes to win," Kessler said of Johnson. "A lot of times, young players are timid. I barked at him pretty hard. I told him not to make cute passes, play like a man."
Kessler's message seemed to be well-received.
As was the message Grace sent to the opposition: that when the Lancers are on top of their game, they're a very formidable opponent.
Trailing 39-38 at halftime, the Lancers broke the second half open with a 14-2 run.
Eight of Grace's points in the run were scored by Marcus Moore, who finished the game 8 of 13 from the field for 17 points. The only one of the three talented freshmen recruits that started, he also added five rebounds, five steals and a pair of assists.
Kipsey led the Lancers in scoring with 19 points, 15 of which came from the three-point line. Bailey, a starter, added 10, as did reserve Scott Hamstra.
Eric Snyder and Obie Tann led Judson with 14 points each, while Freddy Bock and Justen Boyd scored nine points each.
While he wasn't overly pleased with his team's first-half performance, Kessler said the one thing that kept the Lancers in the game was rebounding. Grace outrebounded the Eagles 20-10 in the first half and 42-24 for the game.
"The only reason we stayed in the game is because we dominated them on the boards," said Kessler. "That's more chances. We were big on the boards, but we have to control the number of turnovers - we had 28 turnovers.
The Lancers turned the ball over 14 times in each half. Judson had 27 turnovers in the game, 16 of which came in the second half when Grace made a number of steals.
The Lancers are in action again Saturday at 3 p.m. as they host East-West for homecoming. The Lady Lancers entertain Concordia at 1 p.m.
GRACE 89, JUDSON 63
Judson 39 24 - 63
Grace 38 51 - 89
Judson - Wallis 0-1 0-0 0, Tann 6-10 2-5 14, Bock 4-5 1-2 9, Leak 2-8 1-2 5, Boyd 4-6, 0-0 9, Gonnam 2-2 2-4 7, Snyder 6-10 0-0 14, Savovic 0-2 0-0 0, Jasovic 2-6 1-2 5, Oates 0-3 0-0 0, Nickol 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 26-54 7-15 63.
Grace - Stuckmeyer 0-2 0-1 0, Ritter 2-4 0-0 5, S. Hamstra 3-6 3-4 10, M. Moore 8-13 0-0 17, Richmond 4-6 0-1 9, S. Moore 1-2 0-0 2, Johnson 4-5 2-3 10, Bailey 5-7 0-1 10, J. Hamstra 1-2 1-1 3, Kipsey 6-12 2-4 19, Scott 0-1 0-2 0. Totals 36-63 8-17 89.
Three-point goals - Judson 4 (Snyder 2, Boyd 1, Gonnam 1), Grace 9 (Kipsey 5, Ritter 1, S. Hamstra 1, M. Moore 1, Richmond 1). Rebounds - Judson 24 (Jasovic 5), Grace 42 (Johnson 7, Bailey 7). Turnovers - Judson 27, Grace 28. [[In-content Ad]]
WINONA LAKE - He didn't really say much afterward about what he told his team at halftime, but whatever veteran Grace College men's basketball coach Jim Kessler said worked.
"I basically told them to get after it," said Kessler, whose Lancers opened up the season Wednesday evening by beating the visiting Judson College Eagles 89-63.
Grace trailed 39-38 at halftime but came out of the locker room a completely different team, a more inspired team.
Grace started the second half with a 14-2 run and outscored Judson 51-24 in the final 20 minutes of play as Kessler picked up his 489th coaching win in the first game of his 28th season with the Lancers.
"We went to a two-three zone because we couldn't stop anybody," said Kessler. "Then we made a real nice run with three rookies on the floor. Some people stepped up and our post players did a better job earning some respect in the post."
The Lancers made just 14 of 28 (50 percent) shots from the field in the first half, but came back and made good on 22 of 35 shot attempts (62.9 percent) in the second half.
Grace made six steals in the first half Wednesday evening. The Lancers came out with a higher intensity on defense in the second half and made 14 steals after the intermission and converted them into 21 points.
There were still signs of it being Grace's first game, namely some easy buckets given up in the paint, but without question the second half was a completely different effort.
"All in all, I'm pretty pleased," said Kessler, whose Lancers overcame a 17-point halftime deficit on the road a year ago, and who own a 5-0 all-time record against the Eagles after Wednesday's 26-point win. "Judson came out with a lot of enthusiasm. They've got a lot of young players, too. Our young kids stepped up the next rung."
While Grace does return experienced players in seniors Andrew Kipsey, Tim Bailey, Kevin Stuckmeyer and Joe Saunders, a lot of preseason talk was about the Lancers' recruiting class.
Twins Marcus and Scott Moore, both listed on the roster at 6-foot-2, led Columbia City to a 65-9 record their final three seasons of high school, including a run to the 4A state finals as seniors.
Kyle Johnson, a 6-7 Grace recruit, led Jimtown to a 25-2 record and the 2A state championship as a senior.
Of the 12 Grace players who got playing time Wednesday evening, it may have been Johnson who turned around his game the most in the second half.
Coming off the bench in the first half, Johnson was timid at times and passed the ball rather than looking to score.
He took just one shot in the first half.
After a strong second-half performance off the bench, Johnson finished the game 4 of 5 from the field, 2 of 3 from the free throw line, scoring 10 points to go with his seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
"He knows what it takes to win," Kessler said of Johnson. "A lot of times, young players are timid. I barked at him pretty hard. I told him not to make cute passes, play like a man."
Kessler's message seemed to be well-received.
As was the message Grace sent to the opposition: that when the Lancers are on top of their game, they're a very formidable opponent.
Trailing 39-38 at halftime, the Lancers broke the second half open with a 14-2 run.
Eight of Grace's points in the run were scored by Marcus Moore, who finished the game 8 of 13 from the field for 17 points. The only one of the three talented freshmen recruits that started, he also added five rebounds, five steals and a pair of assists.
Kipsey led the Lancers in scoring with 19 points, 15 of which came from the three-point line. Bailey, a starter, added 10, as did reserve Scott Hamstra.
Eric Snyder and Obie Tann led Judson with 14 points each, while Freddy Bock and Justen Boyd scored nine points each.
While he wasn't overly pleased with his team's first-half performance, Kessler said the one thing that kept the Lancers in the game was rebounding. Grace outrebounded the Eagles 20-10 in the first half and 42-24 for the game.
"The only reason we stayed in the game is because we dominated them on the boards," said Kessler. "That's more chances. We were big on the boards, but we have to control the number of turnovers - we had 28 turnovers.
The Lancers turned the ball over 14 times in each half. Judson had 27 turnovers in the game, 16 of which came in the second half when Grace made a number of steals.
The Lancers are in action again Saturday at 3 p.m. as they host East-West for homecoming. The Lady Lancers entertain Concordia at 1 p.m.
GRACE 89, JUDSON 63
Judson 39 24 - 63
Grace 38 51 - 89
Judson - Wallis 0-1 0-0 0, Tann 6-10 2-5 14, Bock 4-5 1-2 9, Leak 2-8 1-2 5, Boyd 4-6, 0-0 9, Gonnam 2-2 2-4 7, Snyder 6-10 0-0 14, Savovic 0-2 0-0 0, Jasovic 2-6 1-2 5, Oates 0-3 0-0 0, Nickol 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 26-54 7-15 63.
Grace - Stuckmeyer 0-2 0-1 0, Ritter 2-4 0-0 5, S. Hamstra 3-6 3-4 10, M. Moore 8-13 0-0 17, Richmond 4-6 0-1 9, S. Moore 1-2 0-0 2, Johnson 4-5 2-3 10, Bailey 5-7 0-1 10, J. Hamstra 1-2 1-1 3, Kipsey 6-12 2-4 19, Scott 0-1 0-2 0. Totals 36-63 8-17 89.
Three-point goals - Judson 4 (Snyder 2, Boyd 1, Gonnam 1), Grace 9 (Kipsey 5, Ritter 1, S. Hamstra 1, M. Moore 1, Richmond 1). Rebounds - Judson 24 (Jasovic 5), Grace 42 (Johnson 7, Bailey 7). Turnovers - Judson 27, Grace 28. [[In-content Ad]]