John Boyd's first season at Michigan City didn't go quite as well as he hoped. This year they have five seniors and five juniors on the roster. In fact, Michigan City started five seniors. East Chicago Central is coming over a solid year but they lost Indiana All-Star Michael Harris to graduation. Both squads have a lot to prove this season.
The first quarter was the James Sanders show. Sanders, 6'5" senior forward, hit two 3's and four free-throws for 10 points in the quarter. East Chicago Central struggled to get much offense going. The Cardinals were settling for 3's and weren't connecting on many. Michigan City jumped out to a 24-13 lead after the first quarter.
The tide started to turn in the second quarter. Michigan City's hot shooting cooled off and East Chicago picked up their defensive pressure. ECC forced turnover after turnover including back to back five second closely guarded violations. Jerrick Ware, 5'10" senior point guard, started to be more aggressive offensively. He had 8 points in the quarter by my count. Most of the points were from mid-range jumpers. I liked that he didn't over penetrate since he will get in trouble because of his height if he gets too deep in the lane.
Michigan City took a 32-28 lead into halftime. Their confidence was shaken though with ECC's comeback. Michigan City only scored 8 points in the second quarter and that was with a fast paced game for both teams.
The good times continued for East Chicago in the third quarter. This time they were led by senior Anthony Williams. Williams, 6'1", was on fire in the quarter from 3-point range. He struggled shooting in the first half, but I had him 4-6 in the third quarter alone. Behind Williams' strong effort, ECC took a 49-39 lead to the fourth quarter.
Michigan City tried to make a couple of runs in the fourth quarter, but they were never able to get closer than 4 points. MC had a lay-up opportunity that they missed that would have cut the lead to 2 with about 2 minutes left to play. ECC grabbed the miss and then connected on a couple free-throws to extend the lead to 6 points. ECC held on for the 64-56 win.
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Jerrick Ware, 5'10" senior from East Chicago Central, impressed me with his quickness especially laterally. He didn't shoot the ball well from 3 going 0-3, but his form looked good. Ware dominated the mid-range pull up game like I said before. I really liked how under control he was when he was penetrating. He's quick with the ball in his hands, but not elite level, get to the rim anytime quick. His size or lack of size might be a problem at the next level but I see him being a great D2/NAIA player that could also play for a lot of low-major programs.
Anthony Williams, 6'1" senior from ECC, showed an ability to knock down shots. He's also athletic enough to finish inside against contact. Williams' ball handling is not good enough to be a point guard at the college level. He looks like he could be a good defender though.
James Sanders, 6'5" senior Michigan City, looked great in the first quarter. He was non-existent after that though. He is 6'5" and looks to be a good shooter. Sanders is also a pretty good athlete. I didn't see him put the ball on the floor much. He looks like a catch and shoot type of player that should be able to guard a couple of positions at the next level.
Tre'Quan Burnett, 6'3" freshmen East Chicago Central, didn't play any varsity but is listed on the varsity roster. I caught a glimpse of him during the JV game. He seemed very athletic and had good body control when he was hit on a couple of lay-ups. He might not have an E'twaun Moore freshmen year for East Chicago but he might contribute at some point.
Shereff Knight, 6'1" senior Michigan City, didn't impress me. I know that Coach Boyd really loves him, but I don't see it. He showed some explosiveness on a couple of drives, but he didn't finish and he didn't make good decisions when he was in the lane a few times. Knight isn't a spectacular ball handler either. I believe he can play for some college programs but not the best D2/NAIA schools.
Donte Brown, 6'4 sophomore East Chicago Central, picked up two fouls in the first two minutes of the game. So his minutes were limited, but he looks to be athletic with a pretty good shooting stroke. I would have liked to see more of him. He's definitely a guy to watch for at least low-major D1's and possibly higher.
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