Five Takeaways: Maumee Valley at Cardinal Stritch
Patient playmaking from Jordan Burton. And-ones by Joey Holifield. Little Anderson going coast to coast. Three-pointers by Collin Yost. Rebounds from the post players.
It was a total team effort for Cardinal Stritch in their 69-58 win over Maumee Valley; even though the game was advertised as a individual battle between sophomore guards Joey Holifield and Zeb Jackson.
Stritch, the #6 team in our December Power Rankings (Division III) advanced to 11-1 with a Toledo Area Athletic Conference (TAAC) victory. We came away from this game thinking about the viability of Stritch as a Regional Championship contender. Ottawa Glandorf and Archbold cloud their path. But, the pieces fit together for Stritch, so let’s take a closer look at each of those components.
Stopping Zeb Jackson
Playing against Maumee Valley means preparing for sophomore sensation Zeb Jackson, a fluid 6’2” shot creator who is ready to pull from the volleyball line. This takeaway is about the coaching. From start to finish, head coach Jamie Kachmarik ensured fresh legs would be face-guarding Jackson. They were physical with him, even bringing double teams when he caught that directed Jackson to the corners or into step-backs jumpers.
No shot clock, no problem
We usually think of 5’10” junior point guard Jordan Burton as an aggressive jump shooting lead guard who keeps the defense honest from deep. That part of his game lingers still, but Burton was far more patient than usual tonight. He’s turned into an extension of the coaching staff — surveying the court for opportune driving lanes so that he can make a play for others.
Stritch is far more methodical than when we watched them last season. Defensively, sure, they’re aggressive. But, honestly to a fault on a couple possessions, they wait for the right shot on the offensive end.
Holifield scores 15
Holifield compliments Burton’s style by being a score-first slasher in this offense. He’ll definitely play the point guard at the next level because of his measurables and court awareness. However, Stritch wants him to crash the weak-side boards, go through the defense for finishes, protect the ball, and hit threes when the defense doesn’t show respect. Holifield played a sound game and is about as consistent a sophomore as you’ll find.
Controlling the glass
It started with 6’3” junior swingman Little Anderson (2019) tracking down rebounds in a chaotic first quarter. (He loves to push the pace in these situations, usually going from baseline to baseline. He shows elusiveness in avoiding charges in the paint.) Throughout the game, their three-player rotation of post players — Terrance Taylor (6’4”), Alex Adams (6’6”), Ashton Caryer (6’6”) — wore out Maumee Valley. These forwards aren’t looking to score the ball. Instead, they battle for position and keep possessions alive by kicking out to their trusted guards.
Yost stretches the floor
Collin Yost was the clutch senior off the bench tonight. He connected on three from beyond the arch, including one where he was leaning off to the left to avoid a defender. The 5’9” senior specialist rounds out a complete ball club that is coming together nicely in Oregon, Ohio.