Churchill 71, Sheldon 65: Five Takeaways
The Churchill Lancers continued to lead-off their season well on Wednesday with a big-time non-conference victory over the Sheldon Irish, one of the favorites to win the 6A Southwest Conference. The talented Lancers walked into this blockbuster matchup boasting a…
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Continue ReadingThe Churchill Lancers continued to lead-off their season well on Wednesday with a big-time non-conference victory over the Sheldon Irish, one of the favorites to win the 6A Southwest Conference. The talented Lancers walked into this blockbuster matchup boasting a 3-0 record and a top-5 state ranking in the 5A classification, but Sheldon had hopes to knock off the smaller powerhouse with one of the most lethal frontcourts in the state.
Although Churchill trailed at halftime, they turned on the energy in the third quarter, reclaiming a lead that they wouldn’t lose for the rest of the game. The Lancers got this win with tremendous team defense and energy down the stretch, and when Sheldon needed a bucket throughout the fourth quarter, they were forced to throw up bad shots.
Five Takeaways:
Silas Bennion does A LOT with his defense
The junior guard was consistently the best on-ball defender for Churchill, reeking havoc on the perimeter which turned into points on the other end. Bennion was tremendous at staying in front and making smart reaches throughout the game, as he flew around for five steals against a fairly polished Sheldon team. The 6-foot point man was held relatively in-check offensively, ringing up only eight points and a pair of assists, but he still did his best to make a difference on the other end by providing a spark defensively. Bennion’s play on defense was significant beyond the box score, as many of his plays accounted for an important momentum shift in favor of Churchill. Despite some ordinary numbers, Bennion made sure his presence was felt throughout the 71-65 victory.
Churchill is one of the most exciting teams in 5A
The Lancers can put up points in a hurry, and they did so multiple times against the Irish on Wednesday, providing testament to their electric play style. Kaelan O’Neil was the leading scorer for Churchill with 18 points, while fellow post man Brian Goracke scored 15. A large sum of these buckets came as a result of the Lancer’s tremendous ability to turn defense into offense and run the break. The majority of Churchill’s roster enjoys flying around on the defensive end, most notably Bennion, fellow junior guards Ejim Akuma III and Isaiah Wallace, and highly touted freshman Samaje Morgan. This aggressive defense turned into an assortment of fast break buckets Wednesday, as the Lancers rode their high-energy play style to a good win over a 6A opponent.
Patrick Herbert is a handful inside
Brother of current Oregon Ducks football star, the 6-foot-6 Herbert was unstoppable at times for the Irish, scoring 17 points on somewhat minimal touches. The large post presence was the MVP of the second quarter, where he rattled off three straight post-move buckets to give Sheldon a firm lead going into the break. Alongside his tremendous size, Herbert showed flashes of excellence as a low-post star, breaking out an array of moves with very impressive footwork and touch around the rim. Quite simply, when Herbert was given the ball on the block, he was scoring with incredible efficiency.
Brian Goracke is an athlete
The Churchill big man may have been out-sized throughout Wednesday’s game, but he made up for it with impressive athleticism and floor spacing as one of the games leading scorers. Goracke proved his worth early, as he rose up for a monster and-one slam dunk over the 6-foot-7 Dominic McGarvey and stepped back to nail a three pointer both in the first quarter. Churchill’s stretch big proceeded to get a little trigger happy for the rest of the period, but the crowd was probably too astonished by his posterizing dunk to even notice. So far, Goracke certainly appears to be a major piece of Churchill’s incredibly talented class of 2020. Alongside Wallace, Bennion, and O’Neil, the fellow junior adds another dimension to a rather complete Churchill roster.
Sheldon still has work to do
At times Sheldon looked like a complete team against a stifling Churchill defense, particularly in the second quarter when they got the ball inside more consistently. Herbert and McGarvey are definitely the Irish’s premier offensive threats standing at 6-foot-6 and 6-foot-7 respectively, but they were held relatively in check. Herbert scored a game-high for Sheldon on very good shooting, but his touches seemed to dissolve when they needed a bucket most. McGarvey was held to single digits in scoring, but he also collected seven rebounds to put him on double-double watch. Brycen Seghetti scored 15 points and hit a pair of contested three pointers in the final minute of the game to trim the lead to single digits, but Churchill controlled the entire half against a Sheldon offense that seemed stagnant at times.