As senior Stephan Heard goes, so go the Jordan Panthers. And things didn’t look good when Heard crashed to the floor and crawled away writhing in pain as the Panthers clung to a three-point lead over the visiting Compton Tarbabes with just 5:40 to go.
“You wouldn’t feel too good either if you got hit in the groin,” said Jordan head coach Ron Massey.
The Tarbabes had been hanging close all game long and took the lead briefly in the third quarter – with Heard down, they looked prime for another attack. But the explosive 6’6″ forward gathered his wits and re-entered the game to a round of applause, immediately scoring on an inside floater to give Jordan a seven-point lead. When Compton made one last run at the lead with 35 seconds remaining, Heard stepped up to the charity stripe and sunk two free throws. Compton committed turnovers on their next two possessions, and Jordan moved one game closer to first place in the Moore League with a 72-69 victory.
Heard notched 17 points and seven rebounds, leading a Panther attack that continuously found gaps in the Compton 2-3 zone defense and exploited them for easy buckets. Versatile point-forward Will Ervin filled up the state sheet with 16 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals, while raw big man Darius Williams contributed 11 points and four crucial blocks.
“We have enough offensive plays that we can find open men if we’re patient, and we were able to do that,” said Massey.
Superb extra effort nearly won the game for the Tarbabes, who outrebounded the Panthers by six and shot 19-24 from the free-throw line. But experience won out, as Jordan’s senior-laden squad just refused to lose on their home floor. Compton head coach Tony Thomas said that Jordan’s poise made the difference.
“It wears you down,” Thomas said of only having an eight-man roster after several players left the team in the middle of the season. His talented team has been inconsistent at times, largely because they rely so much on inexperienced players. “I can’t make the substitutions that I want to make. It’s been hard on us.”
Pure talent has given the Tarbabes hope against strong Moore League teams this season, but Compton has just two seniors (a sophomore and a freshman led the team in scoring against the Panthers), and it’s taken a toll. But there is an upside to the situation, as young players have opportunities they otherwise may not have had. Sophomore guard Allan Guei terrorized Jordan to the tune of 20 points, seven rebounds and five steals.
“He might be one of the best guards in California next year,” said Thomas, looking forward to the future while also believing his team has the ability to win now. “We’ve got to win the games that we should win and try to beat one of those elite teams. Who knows, we could still get into the playoffs.”
Freshman forward Anthony January put together another strong game as he continues to grow into his game, hitting one tough jumper after another to reach 17 points and four rebounds. January is surely a name to remember come February, but Compton will need better efficiency from junior guard Cliff Sims if they’re to be successful during the rest of the Moore League season. The Tarbabes’ most polished scorer struggled against a stifling Jordan pressure defense, shooting 5-20 for 16 points. An impressive all-around athlete, the 6’4” guard also nabbed a team-high seven rebounds. Compton can expect positive results when they receive production from those two. And, of course, from Guei.
“He was killing us,” Massey said of the 5’10” guard.
But Jordan found a way to win, as they have against every Moore League opponent except for Long Beach Poly this season. With Poly’s shocking loss to Wilson last night, the time is now for the Panthers to make their push. They’ll need to shoot better than 13-25 from the line from now on, but with a defense that forced Compton’s leading scorer into 25% shooting and an offense that made more than 50% of its own shots (25-47), the Panthers seem to be picking up steam at just the right time.