Johnson County gets by Monroe 75-62 to advance in Danville
March 19, 2009
Danville, IL- Game 6 of the NJCAA DII Men's Basketball Tournament featured a 2nd round match-up of Johnson County Community College vs. Monroe Community College. Johnson County received a 1st round bye from a blind draw. Monroe defeated Henry Ford Community College in the 1st round to advance. The winner of this game will play in the semifinals on Friday, March 20 at 6:30 PM vs. the winner of Phoenix College and Delaware Tech.
Johnson County had a screaming start to the game, jumping out to a 5-0 lead within the first minute. Monroe Head Coach Jerry Burns was forced to call a timeout to gather their thoughts. Out of the timeout, Johnson County extended the lead even more to 9-0 in just the first 2 minutes of the game. Monroe was able to put 3 points on the board, but Johnson County held a 15-3 lead after the first 4 minutes. This caused Monroe Head Coach Jerry Burns to burn another timeout. Johnson County's size seemed to cause a problem for Monroe, especially when they packed their big guys down low in a zone. Johnson County eventually built their lead to 24-8 with 10 minutes left in the half. After a Monroe turnover that turned into a lay-up, Monroe Head Coach Jerry Burns had to burn his 3rd timeout. Monroe tried the zone defense, but the Johnson County Shooters stepped up and hit some big shots. The game was extremely physical and both teams were shooting the double bonus with 8 minutes remaining in the half. Despite everything going against Monroe's favor early on, they eventually found a grove and closed the gap to 8 points. Johnson County eventually built the lead up to 14 again, but Monroe hit a couple 3-pointers to keep them within 8 points at the half. Halftime score: Johnson County 41, Monroe 33.
1ST HALF LEADERS FOR JOHNSON COUNTY:
Kenny Moore, 6'6" Fresh, 11 pts
Nafis Ricks, 6'2" Soph, 9 pts
1ST HALF LEADERS FOR MONROE:
Mark Lake Jr., 6'0" Soph, 9 pts
Jashon Mixon, 6'5" Fresh, 9 pts
Johnson County came out from the halftime break and picked up right where they left off. They went on a 6-0 run to start the half to keep the momentum on their side. Monroe was able to keep the lead from getting out of hand, but couldn't close the gap. Both teams struggled to put points on the board up until the 12 minute mark. Monroe got a couple key defensive stops and was able to cut the lead to 2 points with 10 minutes remaining in the game. Johnson County struggled with taking care of the ball and Monroe started to take advantage by converting them into points. Johnson County was able to regain their composure after a Monroe player committed an intentional foul, which gave them free throws and the ball. From there on, Johnson County maintained a 6 plus lead. Monroe did everything they could to try and survive in the last 2 minutes, but Johnson County went on to win 75-62.
Johnson County will now face the winner of Phoenix College and Delaware Tech in the semifinals on Friday, March 20 at 6:30 PM. Monroe will face the loser of the aforementioned game in a consolation match-up on Friday, March 20 at 1:00 PM.
GAME LEADERS FOR JOHNSON COUNTY:
Kenny Moore, 6'6" Fresh, 19 pts
Nafis Ricks, 6'2" Soph, 17 pts
Jared Henry, 6'0" Fresh, 17 pts
Blake Baird, 6'5" Soph, 10 pts
GAME LEADERS FOR MONROE:
Mark Lake Jr., 6'0" Soph, 14 pts
Kareem Brown, 6'2" Soph, 13 pts
Raheem Singleton, 6'0" Fresh, 9 pts
Jashon Mixon, 6'5" Fresh, 9 pts