By Rob Potter
LIVINGSTON MANOR —January 23, 2004– Midway through Tuesday night’s OCIAA Division VI basketball game between Eldred and host Livingston Manor, the 35-second shot clock froze.
With the clock stuck at “35”, the officials quickly decided just to continue the game without the shot clock.
But the Yellowjackets and Wildcats didn’t seem to need the clock, as they played an up-tempo game in that opening quarter. By the end of those hectic eight minutes, Manor held a 19-14 lead.
Manor (3-6, 1-1 OCIAA) kept up the quick pace in the second quarter, but the Yellowjackets did not. Using a tenacious defense and taking advantage of the fact that they had eight reserves on the bench compared to Eldred’s two, the Wildcats outscored the Yellowjackets 21-9 in the period.
In the third and fourth quarters, Manor gradually extended its lead. The Wildcats posted a 72-38 victory.
A balanced scoring attack was a key factor in the win, as four Wildcats reached double figures. Leading the way was senior forward Anthony Larry, who netted a game-high 16 points. Marvin Bonilla scored 13 points, Timmy Bryant registered 12 and Terrance McCann added 10.
Eldred (1-9, 0-4 OCIAA) was led by Kyle Jasper and Kyle Ranne, each of whom finished with 10 points. Todd Walter added six points for the Yellowjackets.
“I thought we rebounded well,” Manor Coach Charlie Hicks said. “We were able to cause some turnovers, which was key.”
While happy with the way his team played, Hicks was also quick to praise the Eldred players and their performance.
“They definitely didn’t give up, they played a great game,” he said. “The game was a lot closer that the final score indicates, especially in the first half.”
Like Hicks, Eldred Coach Doug Reiser noted that Manor’s player advantage was an integral factor in the game.
“It makes it difficult when you only have two kids on the bench,” Reiser said. “We were able to run with them at the beginning of the game, but when our kids started to run out of gas they were able to bring in more subs.”
Reiser noted that the Yellowjackets kept competing, no matter what the score was.
“The score does not indicate what kind of game it was,” he said. “I’m proud of my kids. They kept working hard.”
One reason the Eldred bench was so thin is the fact that forward Chris Ryman has been injured. But Ryman, whom Reiser called the “heart and soul of our team,” may be back soon.
“He’s going to return to practice in a couple of days and hopefully he’ll be able to play next week,” Reiser said.