Cannon the key as Downers South puts away Leyden
By Chuck Fieldman cfieldman@pioneerlocal.com January 13, 2012 10:02PM
Leyden's Alex Herrera knocks down a three-pointer, during the Eagles' game against Downers Grove South on Friday. Herrera set a school record for most consecutive free throws made. | Vincent D. Johnson~for Sun-Times Media.
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Updated: January 20, 2012 10:51AM
Jordan Cannon said he wasn’t even aware that Leyden had cut Downers Grove South’s 17-point halftime lead to four less than two minutes into the fourth quarter of the Mustangs’ 67-57 West Suburban Gold win Friday at Leyden.
But it was the junior reserve guard scoring all of his team’s points in a 7-0 run that gave Downers South (11-2, 4-0) some cushion and allowed the Mustangs to defeat a Leyden team that entered the game having won five of its last six games.
“I really wasn’t paying attention to Leyden coming back; we just try to play our kind of basketball,” said Cannon, who finished with 13 points. “We had the lead at halftime and sort of had it in our heads that we could take it easy. We were being lazy on defense.”
Downers South coach Jay Baum said he wasn’t at all surprised by Cannon’s contribution.
“He’s an outstanding player who probably would start for a lot of teams,” Baum said. “He did give us a spark.”
Baum was pleased with his team’s defensive effort in the first half, but not with what he saw in the second half.
“Like a lot of teams, we want to create offense with our defense,” he said. “We need to keep the intensity for four quarters.”
It was the Mustangs’ pressure defense that forced eight Leyden turnovers in the second quarter while Downers South extended a 14-11 advantage after one quarter to 39-22 by halftime.
And while the Mustangs had the pressure going at the defensive end during the second quarter, star guard Jerron Wilbut erupted for 15 of his team-best 23 points in that period.
But Leyden (10-5, 3-3) used a 15-point third quarter by senior guard Alex Herrera, who had a game-high 26 points, to close within 51-41 after three periods.
“Coach talked all week in practice about defending (Herrera),” Cannon said. “We knew he was a good shooter and a good ball-handler.”
A three-point-play by Herrera, sandwiched by a pair of three-point baskets by junior guard Omar Lozoya cut the Downers South lead to 54-50 with 6 minutes, 25 seconds left in the game, before Cannon’s seven consecutive points pulled the Mustangs out of danger.
“I was very glad to see that we came out fighting in the second half,” Leyden coach Bill Heisler said. “They went to the 1-3-1 in the second quarter, and we hit pause. We worked against it all week in practice, but you can’t simulate their athleticism, and you can’t turn the ball over like we did against them.”
The Eagles committed 24 turnovers in the game.
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