Clear Lake Falconhoops

 Clear Lake 66 – Clear Creek 55 

How to describe our Clear Lake Falcons in one word? Superb competitors! Okay, that is two words but the Falcons are not just competitors, they are superb competitors. Anyone who witnessed the match-up between the Falcons (now 21-5) and the underdog Clear Creek Wildcats (14-13) Tuesday night in the Krueger Field House might have made several observations about the state-ranked Falcons. 

Observation 1.

Maybe Clear Lake deserves their state ranking based on the way they came back in the second half after being so outplayed in the first half. 

Don’t be misled by Clear Creek's record. With new coach Chris Romine at the helm Clear Creek has a very good basketball team and #23 TCU bound 6’6” guard Logan Lancon (18 points) and #41 Ian Davis (17 points) made it obvious. So obvious in fact that it appeared the Wildcats would have their way with the struggling Falcons based on first half performance where the Falcons did not look like one of the top teams in the state. The Wildcats scored with ease from midrange throughout most of the first half as they impressed the crowd with their ease of scoring and shooting accuracy while the Falcons shooting from the field was poor in the first quarter but better in the second quarter.  

Despite Lake having a better basketball team at this point of the season, the Falcons were noticeably outplayed in almost every aspect of the game from the outset but the Falcons came out in the second half and dominated the game. In the second half it was like Lake brought in a different team with the same faces and bodies with improved judgment and increased determination and energy. (You gotta love those half time “talks”). 

Cody Kinsey kept the Alvin and Galveston Ball scouts busy writing as he had his career best performance with a game high 26 points. Cody shot 86% (6 of 7) of his 2’s and 50% (4 of 8) of his treys. Andrew Gorie’s defense in the first half inspired his teammates as did Jay Williams’ awesome efforts on both ends of the court throughout the game. Foul trouble kept both players off the court in both halves of the game. More about that later. Jason Hollis had another standout performance as his hard work and determination were a factor throughout the game. Jason had seven assists which is his career high so far. Mark McCollum’s stabilizing influence when he is in the game stood out again. 

Observation 2.

The Falcons’ depth off the bench is a dominant factor. 

Clear Lake has the most depth of any Lake team in almost twenty years. In the second half the Wildcats shooting percentage waned due to some fatigue no doubt and improved Falcon defense. Meanwhile the Falcons doubled their shooting accuracy from the field (3 of 3 treys, 12 of 20 two’s) in the second half. Lake never looked tired and almost every Falcon scored, always a good sign.

Reserve Brian Campbell’s speed and quickness on both ends of the court were really accentuated in the second half. By the way, Brian is playing with a facemask due to a broken nose from last Thursday’s practice but his obscured vision did not impair his speed. In fact the face guard may work to the team’s advantage because it looks so ominous.

Kevin Anderson continued to come off the bench and make us all proud. And Steve Hartman, off the bench, wow!  

Observation 3.

The Falcons are capable of playing outstanding defense when they make up their minds. 

Steve Hartman’s nickname should be “Sparky”. He came into the game off the bench and absolutely sparked his team with his effort (especially in the second half), his impressive speed and his quickness (not just on defense). Andrew Gorie had one of his better defensive outings for the season so far. With four blocked shots Jay Williams looked like he was having some fun as he hustled up and down the floor (Creek’s post Ian Davis was held to two baskets in the second half). Another set of rock solid defensive performances from savvy Mark McCollum and Jason Hollis. Kyle Ashton’s athleticism continued to shine as he logged another undeterred outing. Keep in mind these guys are going to get even better before the season is over. 

Observation 4.

Even less than acceptable officiating can be overcome when they want it bad enough (also proving the Falcons do not have to rely on free throws to win).  

The Falcons foul a lot but the fouls called in this game were the most one sided against Lake ever called in the Lake gym (based on my recollections and the comments of several Clear Lake long time fans). It brought back memories of playing at Galveston Ball High years ago where, for several years, the officiating was so lopsided that officials had to be brought in from another region, usually San Antonio, to get an impartial game called. 

The foul count against the Lake squad was 12-3 in the first half and 11-2 in the second half with four minutes remaining in the game. The actual fouling was not nearly that one sided and too many no-calls often afforded Creek an advantage.

Creek scored 15 points off free throws (15 of 20) while Lake scored 5 of 8. In the first half Creek shot 12 free throws; Lake shot 1. Clear Lake shot 5 of 8 free throws in the game which includes a couple of frustration fouls by Creek once Lake spread the floor and played ball control to run the clock.  The average number of free throws Clear Lake shoots per game this season is 21. The 8 free throws Clear Lake shot is the lowest of the season and 13 below their average! Let’s assume these competent officials were impartial and just say they had an off night and leave it at that. Yeah, Right. 

Photos for this game can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/falconhoops200708  no later than Thursday evening, January 17.

Individual Scoring:

Cody 26 points (game high, Varsity career high) (4 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 assists),

Brian 9, Andrew 7 (6 rebounds, 3 steals), Steve 6, Jay 6 (4 blocked shots), Kevin 4, Kyle 4, Mark 3, Jason 1 (7 assists, 2 steals)