By Murray Gleffe, Correspondent
ASHWAUBENON-Bryant Phillips made a move into the lane, stepped back, and then hit a fadeaway sixteen-footer with 8 seconds left to give the Jaguars a 69-65 boys basketball victory over the Sheboygan North Golden Raiders (Dec. 8).
Anthony Guarascio led the way with 26 points, and Phillips added 22 for the winning team.
Both teams came out torching the nets.
Jeremy Cox (inserted into the starting line-up for the Jaguars) took full advantage by hitting a three pointer from the top of the key to give his team the early 6-4 lead.
“We knew we had to beat North’s pressure today,” said Chris Karcz, Jaguar Head Basketball Coach. “I put Jeremy into the starting line-up and I thought he did a tremendous job bringing the ball up the court; he showcased his senior leadership.”
The Golden Raiders then seized some momentum by going on an 11-2 run.
The main catalyst was none other than 5-9 Guard Tanner Janquart who is the Golden Raiders ‘6th man’.
He connected on four straight shots to put the Golden Raiders up 20-13 with 9:18 left till the break.
The Jaguars, however, began breaking the Golden Raiders press with ease.
Guarascio connected on three straight shots around the rim, and after Evan Wood hit a ‘bunny in the lane’ the Jaguars were back in front at 29-25 with just seconds remaining till halftime.
Brent Widder connected on a triple as the horn went off, and the Jaguars took a slim 29-28 lead into the locker room.
No team had a lead greater than four points for the first five minutes of the second half.
The Golden Raiders went up 47-41 with 13:20 remaining in the game behind the play of Widder.
His shot didn’t fall in the opening 18 minutes of the game, but he hit four in a row during one sequence and suddenly the Jaguars were looking at a three-possession deficit.
Once again, the Jaguars fought back scoring 13 of the next 18 points to regain the lead at 54-52 with 6:40 left in the game.
“I was really happy with our shot selection today,” said Karcz. “We came off screens well, squared ourselves up to the basket, and battled back numerous times when we trailed.”
After six lead changes down the home stretch, the Golden Raiders found themselves up 65-64 with just 42 seconds remaining in the FRCC opener.
The Jaguars worked the ball around and then called time-out with 23 seconds left to set up the final play.
When play resumed, the Jaguars Phillips came off a screen and hit the game winning shot!
The Jaguars added two free throws to seal their first conference and overall win of the season.
“When it left Bryant’s hands, it looked good from my angle,” added Karcz. “He has been in many big games and he hit the clutch shot when it mattered most. I’m excited for the kids today.”
The Jaguars will be back in action Dec. 12 when they travel to Manitowoc to take on the Ships.
Sheboygan North/Ashwaubenon Box Score
Sheboygan North28,37, -65
Ashwaubenon 29,40, -69
Golden Raider Totals: FG’s 21-49, 3 PT FG’s 11-27, FT’s 12-20, Rebounds 29, Steals 4, Personal Fouls 20
Janquart 23, Widder 18, Sokolowski 10, Schmidtke 10, Renzelmann 2, Thyes 2
Jaguar Totals: FG’s 26-58, 3 PT FG’s 8-18, FT’s 9-16, Rebounds 16, Steals 7, Personal Fouls 18
Guarascio 26, Phillips 22, Cox 7, Baierl 5, Wood 4, Adair 3, Schuster 2
