Ten best: Lincoln vs. Roosevelt at the PIL Showcase
It’s not often you’ll see two lead changes in the final five seconds of a game, but that’s what spectators saw at the PIL Showcase on Saturday, as Lincoln edged Roosevelt 55-54 on Bryce Sloan’s two made free throws with seconds remaining. Those expecting the Cardinals, who improved to 8-3 and 3-1 in PIL play, to handily beat Roosevelt, which fell to 3-7 (0-3), were mistaken. The Roughriders played tight throughout and led by four points with 90 seconds left, but eventually succumbed to Lincoln.
(Pictured: Bryce Sloan’s final free throw iced the game. Said Sloan: “I have so much confidence in my shot at the line, I don’t really think about it.”)
MVP: Bryce Sloan (Lincoln)
Lincoln’s best player is often their MVP. A 6-foot-3 guard, Sloan is capable of doing a lot; and the Cardinals rely on him for that. Despite sitting the entire second quarter with foul trouble, he finished with 19 points. His most impactful play came with four seconds left, when Lincoln trailed by one point. Looking to receive an inbounds pass and go the length of the floor for a last-second shot, Sloan (seemingly) intentionally got tangled up with Roosevelt’s Jaylen Lyday, drew a dead ball foul, and went to the line to shoot two free throws. His savvy play won the game for Lincoln. Sloan figures to be a Division-II caliber player.
Here is the foul, called with four seconds left, that sent Sloan to the line for the game-winning free throws against Roosevelt. The foul can be seen in the left side of the frame. #opreps pic.twitter.com/Dl6m9ZNrQ8
— Hayes Gardner (@HayesGardner) January 7, 2018
Play of the game: Addison Phillips (Lincoln)
Sure, Sloan’s free throws were big. But Lincoln’s final field goal came from Phillips. Trailing by two with under a minute left, Phillips used some old school post-up moves for a crafty bucket to tie the score at 53. Although Phillips struggles from the free throw line at times, he’s a strong big who gobbles up boards and is good for at least a couple put backs a game.
Best offensive performance: Jaylen Lyday (Roosevelt)
The 6-foot-3 senior scored Roosevelt’s last two field goals–both on lay-ins–and finished with 17 points. Reliable both from the free throw line and in the paint, Lyday led the Roughriders in points. On a night when Roosevelt star Bostyn Holt wasn’t quite himself, Lyday stepped up.
Best performance while battling pneumonia: Bostyn Holt (Roosevelt)
This award wasn’t much of a contest as he was likely the only player battling such an illness, but Holt played most of the game, despite missing the team’s previous contest (a loss to Benson) with pneumonia. He finished with 14 points. A 6-foot-7 point guard, Holt is an interesting player to watch. On defense, he guarded Sloan, altering his shot and tipping passes. One such tip led to a fast break with two minutes left. When he gets the ball inside, he is impossible to stop as he rises up for easy lay-ins. Said Lincoln coach Pat Adelman: “He’s a great player. I love his game. He can really pass the ball. We tried to put a big on him and keep him out of the paint. That’s a lot easier said than done.” Although he missed four free throws in the fourth quarter, he made his final attempt of the game to give Roosevelt a 54-53 lead with four seconds left. Holt probably isn’t quick enough to play point guard in college, but he could certainly play wing with his size and long arms.
Best defensive performance: Trevon Richmond (Roosevelt)
Roosevelt junior Trevon Richmond is a more traditional point guard. Listed at 6-foot, he’s quick with the ball and quicker on defense. Against Willamette earlier this year, he tallied seven steals. He added a few of those against Lincoln, once turning a steal into a fast break layup. Said Roosevelt coach Yusuf Leary before the game, “He does not take a play off. Any coach would love to have him on their side.” For a moment, it looked like Richmond might have been playing for Lincoln’s coach. He caught the opening tip and immediately sprinted for his own basket, looking to score. He would’ve laid it in, uncontested, but his team yelled at him loud enough that he realized his mistake and turned around. No harm done.
Best guy off the bench: Matt Phillipi (Lincoln)
This one is easy. Phillipi, a sophomore, played freshman basketball last year and rarely gets playing time this season. But when Sloan headed to the bench in the second quarter with two fouls, Phillip came in for five solid minutes. He must not have known to be nervous because he played his role perfectly and scored two buckets, including a fast break lefty layup. Listed as a forward on the roster (that must be a mistake), the 5-foot-10 sophomore had a good performance. With sophomore sixth man Max Weissflog restricted to the bench with a fractured ankle, Lincoln went a little deeper into their bench than usual. Said Adelman: “It’s next man up for us. Today, that was Matt Phillipi.”
Best intangibles: Quinton Galash (Lincoln)
Another Lincoln reserve who made a big contribution was Quinton Galash. He played limited minutes but made a huge play down the stretch. Roosevelt had the ball with a minute left, leading by two. Holt drove in, but Galash took a charge on the talented guard. That set up the Lincoln possession when Phillips scored to tie it up.
Best under-the-radar performance: Daniel Kovalev (Lincoln)
Kovalev will not wow you with jaw-dropping plays, but he is steady and consistent. Sloan largely runs the Cardinals’ offense, but when he went to the bench with foul trouble, Adelman hollered out for the junior guard to take over. He finished with 11 points and always did the right thing: shooting when open, penetrating when available and playing tight defense. A strong guard (Kovalev also plays running back for Lincoln), Kovalev is cool and collected on the court. In the final minutes, he did miss two key free throws, but that was out-of-character for him. It must have been contagious; neither team was strong from the stripe in the fourth quarter until Sloan finished it off.
Best underclassman: Malik Kelley (Roosevelt)
Kelley fouled out late in the fourth quarter, but he played a consistent role for the Roughriders. A 6-foot-3 sophomore, Kelley held his own battling with Lincoln’s senior posts: Anastas (6-foot-6) and Phillips (6-foot-5).
Best help-the-team-in-any-way-you-can-moment: Rasheed Butler (Lincoln)
Butler might be Lincoln’s best shooter. He isn’t afraid to chuck it from the volleyball line–and he’ll hit it, too. However, the senior scorer was regulated to just one trey and 5 points on Saturday. Still, he influenced the game down the stretch when, with three minutes left, Roosevelt fed an entry pass into the paint. Butler dove and slapped the ball away, giving Lincoln a key possession.
Follow more prep hoops coverage from Hayes Gardner on Twitter, @HayesGardner.