What a difference a month can make.
On Dec. 15, the Spartans lost their first game of the season, a 65-41 blow-out at the hands of Kent Roosevelt, the two-time defending Portage Trail Conference champions.
On Wednesday, the Spartans turned the tables on the Rough Riders (10-3, 8-1), handing them a 73-56 conference loss—their first of the season and third over the past three seasons.
“It’s the best game we played all year,” Springfield head coach Jack Morgan said.
The Spartans executed their game plan flawlessly, attacking Roosevelt underneath early on, and forcing 6’9” center Cameron Black into foul trouble.
“The last time we played them we got in foul trouble,” Morgan said. “This time we stayed out of foul trouble and got them in foul trouble. We knew they were going to press us. Our goal was to get the ball across half court and go right at Cameron Black. He’s pretty big, and he’s going to block shots. But we knew from the get-go that we have to go right at him. It doesn’t matter how many times he blocks our shot, he will get in foul trouble.”
Black was called for two fouls in the first two minutes, forcing him to sit through much of the first half, and allowing the Spartans to capitalize in the paint. Ryan Hershberger jumped on the opportunity, earning a game-high 27 points and 14 rebounds.
Feeding the ball to Hershberger were guards Steven Cole and Kyle Brooks, who each scored in double digits, and limited their turnovers.
“When we struggle we turn the ball over like crazy,” Morgan said. “I’ve been telling them, ‘If you guys don’t turn the ball over we’re going to win.’”
Brooks and Cole each had only two turnovers for a total of four from Springfield’s guards.
“That’s excellent,” Morgan said. “They handled their pressure exactly how we wanted them to.”
The Spartans also out-hustled the Rough Riders, aggressively going after rebounds and loose balls.
“I’ve always told [the players] we look like we’re working hard, but we’re not.” Morgan said. “This time we got all the hustle points, we got the loose balls, and we got every rebound we needed to get. We were the ones going after loose balls, getting on the floor and getting the basketball.”
Springfield outscored Kent 20-9 in the second quarter, en route to a 29-17 halftime lead.
The Rough Riders managed to make it interesting in the third quarter, igniting an 8-0 run that brought them within five at 33-28 with 5:14 to play. But the Spartans fired back, finishing the quarter on a 15-6 run to put them ahead 48-34 to enter the fourth.
From there, it was mainly a manner of maintaining the lead, though Springfield managed to maximize it, outscoring the Rough Riders 25-22 in the fourth quarter.
“Before this game we talked about leadership and playing together,” Morgan said. “Sometimes we don’t play together, and it can be our downfall. When we got beat by Kent up there, I asked everyone of [the players] if they thought we got outplayed or beat ourselves. Every single one said we beat ourselves. So we knew we were the better basketball team.
“This is first time in three years I’ve really seen us stick to our game plan and do what we need to do to win the game. And it worked out for us.”
