By PAUL GOTHAM
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A triangle and two didn’t work. Hedging ball screens did.
Dezmere Ellis converted three free throws to complete a late rally as the Leadership Lions beat the McQuaid Jesuit Knights 65-61 in RCAC action Friday night.
Clinging to a one-point edge, Ellis calmly sank two from the line with 16 seconds remaining. The junior guard made it a two-possession game when he sunk one of two nine seconds later.
“I did it for the team. They believed in me,” Ellis said. “That feels great. We came out here fighting. Played hard defense. Tied together.”
Ellis capped a comeback which saw the Lions erase a 10-point second-half deficit.
Ty-Meek Mackie gives the extra pass. Jacquane Reed connects for three. pic.twitter.com/JpxVbhDL0p
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 7, 2017
“He’s our energizer bunny rabbit,” Leadership coach Reggie Simmons said of Ellis. “Anything we ask him to do – dive on the floor, get rebounds, assists, lay it up, shoot the jump shot. I’m just glad I have him for one additional year. He’s a junior. He’s only going to get better.”
The rally started with a defensive adjustment. The result? Leadership caused three turnovers in McQuaid’s first three possessions of the fourth quarter. After allowing more than 17 points per quarter through the first three, the Lions limited McQuaid to two field goals over the first six minutes of the fourth quarter.
“We went to that triangle and two, and I said ‘oh, it’s not working because of those guys were popping the three pointers,” Simmons explained. “We decided let’s go back to the man-to-man and let’s just hedge the screens. That sorta changed the game for us.”
With Leadership disrupting ball screens, McQuaid scored just six points in the fourth quarter.
“The guys were energized,” Simmons stated. “Then we identified all the shooters. All of our rotations were perfect. We normally don’t hedge. When we put it in this week, I was kinda nervous about it. But the guys performed.”
The defense ignited a 14-2 run which saw Leadership grab its first lead of the second half with 5:40 to go in regulation.
Trailing 53-43, Ellis drove baseline, drew the defense and kicked to Rondell Watson for a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer. Ellis cut the deficit to five when he took a lead into the open court from Ty-Meek Mackie and finished with a layup.
Ty-Meek Mackie sets up Rondell Watson for threeeeee…. pic.twitter.com/jzUsM6esQ2
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 7, 2017
Watson connected on another triple before Jacquane Reed scored back-to-back buckets to give Leadership a 57-55 edge.
“Ball movement, that’s about it,” Ellis said Leadership’s rhythm on offense. “Great ball movement to find the open shooters who were knocking down shots.”
Mackie used a crossover dribble from the wing to get in the lane for two and a 62-61 Leadership advantage with 31 seconds remaining. The Lions did not trail again.
“That was a tough one you know,” Simmons of the comeback for the win. “It is huge. They’re a Double-A school. We’ve been a small school for many years. We moved up to A2. It’s huge for the kids. It’s huge for the program. It’s huge for me, too.”
Divine Williams and Josh Purcell scored 14 apiece to pace the Knights. The duo hit four of six McQuaid threes in their quarter.
Anthony Iglesia gets the paint touch and kick to Divine Williams for a catch-and-shoot trey. @MJSNetwork15 pic.twitter.com/tBwUlFRVNw
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 7, 2017
Williams took an inside-out feed from Tyler Cyrus and connected from the left corner. Cyrus, a 6-foot-4 forward hit back-to-back threes before Williams found the measure with two more attempts. It looked like McQuaid would run away with the game when Purcell nailed a long three for a 53-43 McQuaid lead.
Tyler Cyrus for three. @MJSNetwork15 pic.twitter.com/yJCPJWMR2c
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 7, 2017
“It’s really defense that got us back from down ten,” Ellis said. “Didn’t worry about offense. Defense comes first. Defense wins games.”
Ellis finished with 12 points on the night. He was one of four Lions in double figures. Watson netted 14. Reed scored 13. Davon Brown had 10 to go with 11 rebounds. Mackie added eight points and 10 rebounds. After starting 1-3, Leadership improved to 6-3 and have won five straight. The Lions will play Jamestown (VI) on Saturday.
VIEW MORE RON KALASINKAS PHOTOS HERE.
McQuaid fell to 6-5. Anthony Iglesia scored 11. Cyrus had 13. McQuaid hosts World of Inquiry next Tuesday.
Leave a Reply