Lumen and Jackson boys set to begin 2016 with meeting on the hardwood
By Mike Moore
Staff Writer
Jackson – A new year, a familiar rivalry.
What better way to begin 2016 then with a little Jackson High-Lumen Christi boys basketball?
“It’s always a big game,” Jackson coach Dan Crowley said simply. “Emotions will be high because of who it is.”
“When you play your cross-town rival, it’s always a big game,” Lumen’s Pat Neville countered. “That’s going to be one of the best teams we see all year.”
The rivalry obviously puts a little extra on the game, but the less-than-spectacular starts each team has limped to only adds to the importance.
Lumen is 1-3 so far, dropping the season’s first three games before blowing a 21-point lead against Northwest, only to hang on for a 58-56 win on Dec. 18.
Jackson, while playing four very close games, is also just 1-3, though should be a bit less rusty after playing Dec. 29, a 73-68 loss to a 5-0 Dowagiac team.
“Every single game we’ve played has been hard fought and come down to the final minutes,” Crowley said. “All four could have gone either way, but three went away from us.”
To that point, the Vikings three losses have come by a combined nine points, while Lumen’s closest loss was an 11-point setback to Lansing Catholic Central.
Needless to say, and different from the past few years, the Titans will enter this road contest as an underdog.
“And for us, we want to make this a half-court game,” Neville said. “If we’re able to do that, we’re going to be right in it. If it’s an up-tempo, full-court game, it’s not going to be one we like.”
Jackson can, and likely will, try to push the tempo, both with its defensive pressure and offensive transition.
If Lumen is able to handle, or contain that, this will likely be another close game.
If not, as Neville said, it could be a long night.
“Handle composure, get back on defense and take good shots. Those are the three things we have to do well,” Neville said. “We’ll play with confidence, we always do. But I think a quick start is key. We’re going to focus on four minutes at a time, and this is a game where we need to play 32-good minutes.”
And then, there’s Lumen’s task of handling Jackson’s top scorer, and player, Shonte Suddeth.
Suddeth leads the Vikings with roughly 16 points a game, and was instrumental in last year’s 57-49 victory against the one-loss Titans in early March, scoring 19 points with three steals.
“He’s the best player we’ll probably see all year,” Neville said.
Still, thinking this is a Jackson win in the bag would be a huge mistake for the guys in orange and black.
Lumen is inexperienced, but motivated.
Neither team will have a significant advantage in terms of size, and, especially with these two, when rivals meet, anything can happen.
“That’s a team that lost a ton of talent and players from last year, so we’re going to be the hunted,” Crowley said. “I think we were the underdog last year (in both games). Now we aren’t, because of who we have and because this is at our place. We have to protect our court, because we know nothing is going to come easy against them.”
Mike Moore is a play-by-play commentator and Sports Writer for JTV Sports. You can reach him at mjm12@albion.edu. He’s also the author of ‘Love, Defined; A Dedication to the Love, Sacrifice, and Magic of Motherhood.’
Love, Defined is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Tate Publishing or by contacting Mike directly.