Late rally pushes Hornets past Griffons, 70-53
Written by ShaneWilson
Thursday, 28 January 2010 20:50
No Comments
Senior guard Jeremiah Box puts up a jump shot Wednesday night at White Auditorium. Box was the high scorer for the Hornets with 15 of their final 70 points. Kellen Jenkins/The Bulletin

Senior guard Jeremiah Box puts up a jump shot Wednesday night at White Auditorium. Box was the high scorer for the Hornets with 15 of their final 70 points. Kellen Jenkins/The Bulletin

The Emporia State men’s basketball team defeated the Griffons of Missouri Western State last night, 70-53.

Senior guard Jeremiah Box talked about the team’s mentality heading into the game.

“We just knew we had to pull it off,” Box said. “We’ve been in a slump, in a little bit of a losing streak, and we knew we just hadn’t competed for a full 40 minutes yet, offensively and defensively. We knew we just had to come out and play our best – if we competed for 40 minutes we knew we could win the game.”

Box started off the first half strong for the Hornets, hitting a buzzer-beating three-pointer to give his team an early 3-0 lead. A three-pointer by senior guard Dustin Andrews extended the Hornets lead to six, as ESU went up 8-2 with over 17 minutes to play in the half. A slashing move to the basket by Andrews extended the Hornets’ lead to seven at 13-6 with 15:31 left in the first half.

The teams traded points back and forth until Box stepped up and hit a three-pointer from the corner, extending the Hornets lead to 10 at 22-12. A 30-second timeout was called by Emporia State Coach David Moe at the 8:27 mark, with the Hornets still on top of the Griffons, 22-15.

Following the timeout, four points came the Griffons way on consecutive possessions, bringing the score to 22-19 with just over 6:30 left in the half. Senior guard Lamar Wilbern hit a three-pointer from the corner to give the Hornets an eight point lead.

On the following Hornets’ possession, Wilbern was called for a foul on the rebound of a missed shot, then a technical foul. A steal by Wilbern on the next Griffons’ possession led to two breakaway points for Andrews. A media timeout gave a break in the action, with the Hornets leading Missouri Southern 31-23.

Junior forward Adam Holthaus chipped in three points off of a conventional three point play, giving the Hornets a nine point lead with just over 3:30 left to play in the half. The Hornets went into the locker room holding onto a close lead over the Griffons, 39-34.

            Early turnovers didn’t help the Hornets at the start of the second half as they saw their lead cut to two, 40-38. A three-pointer by Griffons forward Dominique Thuston gave Missouri Western a one point lead, 41-40, with 16:58 remaining in the half.

The Hornets retook the lead, 42-41, on a drive to the basket by Box – Box made the shot and was fouled, but couldn’t convert on the free throw line. Box scored again, this time with a five foot jumper in the post that extended the Hornets’ lead to three, 44-41. A timeout on the floor saw the Hornets leading the Griffons 46-43 with 13:38 remaining in the contest.

The Hornets lead was extended to nine with over 10:10 to play thanks to two made free throws from senior guard Tim Niles. After a three-pointer by Missouri Western, the Griffons took a timeout, trailing the Hornets 46-52. Another media timeout stopped the game right after Wilbern drove to the hole, made the basket and was fouled on the way there.

Following the timeout, Wilbern hit the free throw, improving Emporia State’s lead to 11. After a media timeout stopped the action, Andrews stepped up and hit a big three-pointer to pad the Hornets’ lead to 14 with over four minutes left in the contest. ESU went up by 19 with a trey from Box from the left corner, taking the score to 70-51 with less than a minute to play.

The Hornets kept their distance and captured a convincing victory over the Griffons, 70-53.

Box led the team in scoring with 15 points, followed closely by Niles with 12 and Andrews and Wilbern with 11 points apiece. Wilbern also had a game-high five assists.

Coming into the game, defense, especially in transition, was a point of concern for the Hornets. Moe said that because of the Hornets’ ability to shoot the ball well, the defense got better.

“We made some mistakes in transition, but when you’re scoring and hitting shots your transition defense is going to be a little bit better,” Moe said. “When you’re missing every time and you’re coming around standing, standing on offense and dribbling out the possession, your transition defense isn’t going to be any good.”

Andrews said that the team was well aware of the importance of the game.

“We knew it was a must-win game…as far as mentality goes, I think we were able to sustain it the entire game,” Andrews said. “We always come out and we compete hard. We limited mistakes tonight, which was big. We just competed for a full 40.”

The Hornets completed their three-game home stand and will next find themselves on the road versus Truman. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. in Kirksville, Mo.

Barnidge: Their only business is helping others find jobs

Oakland Tribune September 26, 2011 | Tom Barnidge The Concord branch of EastBay Works looks like your standard- issue business office.

Computer bays, desks and chairs span the length of the building, glass walls open on a second-floor view of the traffic below and a buzz of activity fills the room.

You’d never guess the people there were looking for jobs.

This is one of four one-stop career centers — the others are in Brentwood, Antioch and San Pablo — operated by EastBay Works’ Contra Costa County Workforce Development Board. Similar centers operate in Alameda County.

Funded by the U.S. Department of Labor and administered by the counties, the centers offer job listings, workshops, training and Internet access to anyone seeking employment.

The wonder is so few people seem to know of the program.

“My sense is that it’s one of the best kept secrets around,” said Paul Buddenhagen, administrator and service integration manager. “We in social services are not great marketers.” He estimates the four centers attract 250 visitors per day. Some are first-timers, others are repeat clients. The resources are available weekdays to anyone who walks in the door, and success stories are frequent. see here eastbay coupon codes

Case manager Donna Van Wert recently placed two job hunters with Sungevity, a solar-panel manufacturer in Oakland. She helped an accountant hook on with Quickmount, a Concord solar installation company. One former client now works on wind turbines in Livermore, and another for a water agency.

The challenge, she said, is “finding where someone fits.” That, and keeping up spirits in a dispiriting economy.

“Clients have ups and downs,” she said. “They’re jazzed to get an interview, but if it doesn’t pay off, then they’re down again. Part of my role is to find reasons for encouragement. I have clients who have gone through personal trauma — they’ve lost homes, gone into foreclosure, been forced to move.” Case managers work with applicants who show an aptitude for training and a desire for hands-on help. Others simply come for computer access or education. site eastbay coupon codes

Workshops — led by staff members, educators and business people – - offer help with computer skills, social networking, resume writing, interviewing techniques, self-assessment and job-search tips. They are the product of a wide range of perspectives. Representatives from companies such as Chevron, First Republic Bank and John Muir Health serve on the agency’s board of directors alongside educators and government officials.

It’s no secret that job seekers face long odds today. A striking example came last month when Safeway, in preparation for an El Cerrito store opening, partnered with EastBay Works to hold a “hiring” day.

“We had 1,500 people at the one-stop in San Pablo,” Buddenhagen said. “It was like a concert; people lined up for hours. Four or five years ago, it would have been a fraction of that.” EastBay Works monitors its case managers’ success — the goal is 70 percent placement within nine months — but so many people utilize the center it’s impossible to track them all.

“I went through an airport scanner recently,” said Claire Marchiano, manager of the Concord center, “and a security guard says, ‘I know you, from EastBay Works.’ ” She smiled at the recollection of the happy discovery. One more client had landed a job.

Tom Barnidge

TAGS:  , ,

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 28th, 2010 at 8:50 PM and is filed under Men's Basketball, Older. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Leave a Reply