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46 °F Forecast | Road Cams Monday, January 19, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend December 11, 2003 Eagle Point�s Derek Grieve, right,is fouled by Illinois Valley�s Kalen Snook. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Eagles stumble past Illinois Valley Second-half spark carries youthful Eagle Point to the nonconference victory over the Cougars By KRIS HENRY Mail Tribune EAGLE POINT — When you start three sophomores and only have one returner on the varsity squad, coaching sometimes turns into simply hanging on for the ride. Eagle Point head coach Keith Williams found himself in that predicament Wednesday night as he watched his Eagles stumble through a sloppy first half of play with an equally ineffective Illinois Valley team. But as much as Williams’ bellowing advice from the sidelines sailed over the Eagles’ heads in the first half, it struck a chord at halftime and Eagle Point found a new rhythm for the final two periods to claim a 57-43 nonconference victory. "Basically we just needed to pick up the intensity, especially at the defensive end," said Williams, who is back on the EP sidelines after a two-year hiatus. He was the Eagles’ head coach from 1992 to the 2000-01 season. Advertisement "On offense, we just needed to make some reads out there instead of trying to force things." Enter senior returner Junior Malgarejo. The 5-foot-9 guard helped provide a calming influence as Eagle Point stretched its 21-16 halftime advantage by outscoring Illinois Valley 12-1 in the first 2½ minutes of the third quarter. Malgarejo scored six of his 17 points in that span, while sophomore Derek Grieve had four of his game-high 19 points to go with seven rebounds. Malgarejo also chipped in six boards. The only other Eagle to score in the second half was sophomore guard Mychal Williams, who had 12 of his 15 in the final 16 minutes. "I told those guys that the second half is our half and we had to step it up," Malgarejo said of EP’s halftime adjustment. A layup by Mychal Williams got the Eagles started right away, then they scored layups on four of their next five possessions to dash past the Cougars (0-4). "It really helped settle us down," Malgarejo said of the easy transition buckets. Thanks to a handful of offensive breakdowns, Illinois Valley didn’t score its first basket until three minutes had gone by in the third quarter. "It’s been our plague ever since the season’s been going," Cougars head coach Derek Brimhall said of the lull. "This is our fourth game and it seems like every third quarter we do the same thing: We get something good going, then we start doing some things outside the plan that we designed." "After about five minutes we started to settle down a little," Brimhall added, "but the damage was already done." The Cougars’ free-wheeling nature played right into Eagle Point’s hands. With only three players on the roster ranging above 6-foot, and Grieve topping the list at 6-3, the Eagles are more suited for a wild, up-tempo affair. "We’re not very big so we try to do a lot of different things defensively by keeping pressure on the ball and getting into passing lanes," said Keith Williams. The pressure was there in the first half, just not the baskets as Eagle Point forced 10 Cougar turnovers but converted only eight shots in the opening stanza. "Luckily they weren’t knocking down a whole lot either," said Keith Williams, whose team held IV to a 4-for-12 shooting effort in the first half. The Eagles were just as generous in that stretch, coughing the ball up 13 times, but seemed to find a better groove in the final two quarters to end the game with 19 turnovers. "With only one kid with varsity experience coming back, they’re getting there," Keith Williams said of his young cast. "We’ve got a long ways to go, but they’re getting there." Jon Riley and Mike Bertsch each had 11 points to lead Illinois Valley, while Jon Paul had 10 points and five rebounds. ILLINOIS VALLEY (43) — Riley 11, Bertsch 11, Paul 10, Snook 5, Hubbs 2, Gaw 2, Mucha 2, Gerhardt 0. Totals: 13-34 15-27 43. EAGLE POINT (57) — Grieve 19, Malgarejo 17, Williams 15, Bateman 4, Henson 2, Almarez 0, Flood 0, Robinson 0, Warner 0, Nevin 0. Totals: 23-48 5-11 57. Illinois Valley..............................11 5 16 11 — 43 Eagle Point..................................12 9 23 13 — 57 3-point goals — Illinois Valley 2-7 (Riley 1, Paul 1), Eagle Point 6-20 (Malgarejo 3, Williams 3). Fouled out — Henson. JV score — Eagle Point 50, Illinois Valley 47. Reach reporter Kris Henry at 776-4488, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! 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