Box Score ELSAH, Ill. – This afternoon's contest between the Principia Panthers and the Webster Gorloks was eerily similar to last season's matchup between the two teams when they played in Elsah, Illinois. Just as they did last year versus Webster, Principia got off to a hot start, scoring the first six points of the game. This was a lead that the Panthers never relinquished during the first half.
The Panthers were able to maneuver their way through the Gorloks' 2-3 zone defense with seeming ease, largely as a result of good ball movement and getting the ball inside to big man,
Justin Ball. Ball did an excellent job of scoring and also finding open teammates when he drew multiple defenders in the paint.
As the first half progressed, it was apparent that the Panthers were in complete control of the game. The Gorloks were constantly putting new bodies in the game in an attempt to find some sort of combination that would stagnate the Panthers' offense. Although they played twelve men in the first half, the Gorloks were still unable to find an answer for the Panthers offensive domination, nor were they ever able to establish any sort of rhythm on the offensive end.
The Panthers played their starting five for all twenty minutes of the opening half. Principia was dominant on the boards during the first half, as they snatched 20 rebounds compared to Webster's 11. As previously mentioned, the Panthers shared the ball well, which was evidenced as they more than doubled the Gorloks' assist total at the half. At the close of the half, Principia lead Webster, 47-35.
Unfortunately, the second half was a completely different story, as it was all Webster. The Gorloks had their way with the Panthers during the final twenty minutes, as they picked up the intensity on both ends of the floor and finally decided to transition out of their 2-3 zone, which proved to be ineffective at best in the first half. The Gorloks switched to a 1-3-1 half court zone defense at the start of the second half, which caused a multitude of turnovers for the Panthers. The Gorloks scored 25 points off of turnovers throughout the contest, compared to the Panthers' 12.
Turnovers, paired with a seeming inability to rebound on the defensive end, plagued the Panthers in the final twenty minutes of the game. The Gorloks snagged fifteen offensive rebounds in the second half alone, and out-rebounded the Panthers in the second half by ten. The Gorloks protected the ball extremely well in the final half, committing just two turnovers. Oppositely, the Panthers turned the ball over in five of their final ten possessions.
The Gorloks robbed the Panthers of a win this afternoon, as they walked away with an 82-80 win. The Panthers rebounded a missed free throw with 3.9 seconds remaining and threw an outlet pass to
Adaku Anumu who took it end to end and came inches away from winning the game on a wing three point attempt as the buzzer sounded.
Notable contributions for the Panthers included:
Justin Ball with a season-high 31 points on 50% shooting;
Adaku Anumu with 24 points, eight rebounds, and five assists;
Parker Davidson with his daily double-double, stringing together 14 points, a healthy 11 rebounds, and six assists.
The Panthers next compete on Saturday, December 12, at 3:00 p.m. at MacMurray College. Our next home game is on Tuesday, January 5, at 8:00 p.m. versus Blackburn College.
