By Dan McGrath
Leo’s Senior Night crowd was loud and boisterous, but St. Laurence seemed to feed off its energy more than the Lions did in administering a 60-42 Catholic League beat down on Tuesday, Feb. 7.
The Vikings (19-10 overall, 6-6 Catholic League) pressed ferociously and attacked the basket relentlessly in taking control early and never letting up.
“We’re a work in progress,” assistant coach Jim Tracy said before the game. St. Laurence had five sophomores in its starting lineup, so that progress will be interesting to track as time goes on.
Sophomore Jacob Rice feathered in five three-pointers on his way to a game-high 20 points. Fellow sophomore Zerrick Jones, with a linebacker’s build and a Ferrari motor, muscled his way to 17 points and was pretty much unstoppable whenever he chose to attack the basket. The officials rewarded him with 12 free throws, nine of which he made.
As he has all season, senior Keeland Jordan led Leo with 16 points, despite wearing various St. Laurence defenders like an extra shirt all evening. Fellow seniors Christian Scott (12 points) and Jachi Lewis (10) also reached double figures. Once again the Lions (6-20, 2-8) were their own worst enemy, committing 17 turnovers in sustaining 20 losses for the first time since 2012-13.
They’re at Fenwick (15-12, 6-6) on Friday, Feb. 10.