Lawrence leaves Orns, Indians little breathing room
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
BY SCOTT DECAMP
sdecamp@kalamazoogazette.com
BY SCOTT DECAMP
sdecamp@kalamazoogazette.com
OTSEGO -- Scoring points has never really been a problem for Tekonsha's Dustin Orns. He poured in 47 of his team's 65 points in Friday's district championship victory and will finish his sparkling four-year varsity career with 2,073. In Monday night's Class D regional semifinal contest against Lawrence, however, scoring suddenly became an issue for the 6-foot-1 senior guard. The Tigers' tight man-to-man defense made sure that getting open looks or getting into the lane would be big problems and it held Orns to 18 points in a 79-57 win at Otsego High School.
``I got so worn out that when I had an open shot, I was so tired and didn't have the legs. I usually shoot with mostly my legs, and I didn't have anything,'' said Orns, who netted eight of his points from the free throw line and ended up 5-for-24 from the field (0-of-11 from 3-point land). He had no field goals in the first half. ``They're a good group,'' Orns said of the fourth-ranked Tigers (21-1), who will face fifth-ranked Wyoming Tri-unity Christian (20-3) in the regional finals at 7 p.m. Wednesday. ``They're fast -- very fast. They're physical, they've got size; they've got quickness. It's hard to match up with something like that.''
That especially showed in the first and third quarters, when the Tigers outscored Tekonsha a combined 40-22.
Defense was the obvious key for the Tigers, who succeeded in keeping Orns from approaching his 33 points-per-game average. ``We felt that if we could shut him down, we'd take our chances with the rest of the team,'' Lawrence coach Mike Salvano said.
Tigers senior Adrian Ledesma, a 6-foot guard, drew the assignment of blanketing Orns.``You could tell, right from the beginning, he started getting frustrated when we started playing defense,'' said Ledesma, who also totaled 16 points, seven assists and two steals. ``I tried to put as much pressure on him as I could. Every time he took it to the basket, we'd just give him a little nudge -- nothing heavily, but to let him know that we're right there.''
Also making their presence felt were Lee Cammire and the Whittington brothers, Spencer and Shayne. Cammire, a junior guard, scored six points in a game-opening 16-3 run and finished with 13. Shayne Whittington, a 6-9 junior center, had 20 points and 11 rebounds despite dealing with foul trouble all night. Spencer Whittington, a 6-4, 250-pound senior forward, scored 10 of his 14 points in the third quarter and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Brock White and Nick Cummins, the Indians' tallest players at 6-3, finished with 13 and 10 points, respectively. Tekonsha coach Tim Jenkins compared Lawrence to league foe Climax-Scotts, with a big difference being the Tigers' size in the middle.
``Obviously, (the Tigers) have quickness and quick hands,'' Jenkins said. ``And when we beat our man off the dribble, there's a 6-9 guy and 6-4 guy waiting.''
Wednesday's clash against Tri-unity -- a 62-52 winner over Climax-Scotts -- will not only feature two teams ranked among the top five in Class D. It will be a contrast in hair styles. Dan Possehl, a 6-9 Tri-unity center, sports an afro. Ledesma and the Whittingtons have opted for the ``fohawk,'' which is like a mohawk but with hair short on the sides and spiked or gelled up in the middle. ``Adrian first got it, and then my brother came up to me and said, `Hey, you want to get a haircut?''' Shayne Whittington said. ``And I'm like, `Sure.''' ``We had it in the district finals,'' Spencer Whittington said. ``It's a little intimidation, maybe.''