NORRIS CITY-OMAHA-ENFIELD 2A SECTIONAL
Cairo uses middle run to oust Crab Orchard
Pilots 16-4 sprint changes contest in 62-51 win; Trojans close season at 26-6

03-05-14
BY JACK BULLOCK
NORRIS CITY – The Cairo Pilots, who have spent the last five months playing anyone and anywhere during a rough-and-tumble independent schedule, have reached the point where they wanted to be to begin with.

Coach Brian Brandtner’s program is on the brink of its first trip to the state finals since 2003 after defeating Crab Orchard, 62-51 on Wednesday night in the 1A Norris City-Omaha-Enfield Sectional.

Using their overall quickness advantage on both ends of the floor, Cairo improved to 16-13 on the season and will face Sesser-Valier in the sectional title game on Friday night with a berth in the SIU Carbondale 1A Supersectional in the balance.

It has been balance on the offensive end that is the staple of this team this season and it showed on Wednesday night as three Pilots lit up the scoreboard with double-figures and seven Cairo players produced points in the win as they pulled away from the Trojans late in the contest to reach the Sweet 16 round.

Dave Taylor, a 6-foot freshman forward, paced the Pilots with 15-points while senior guard Jarvis Woodson tossed in 12.

Ten points came from 6-foot senior Trevon Houston as Cairo picked up yet another win.

After upsetting state and ABV number one Meridian on Friday night, there was no let up from this squad on Wednesday.

Despite not being able to put the Trojans away until late in the contest, the Pilots never seemed in any danger as they ended Crab Orchard’s season at 26-6.

For head coach Jon Brown, he gets to say goodbye (in a basketball sense) to 5-foot-11 senior forward Caleb Perry.

This outstanding scorer finished his prep career on Wednesday night with 21-points, a game-high.

However Cairo made this scorer earn every point, as the Pilots constantly double-teamed Perry throughout the contest.

“We couldn’t get into our offense very well tonight,” said Coach Brown. “Their (Cairo) length and speed bothered us. We didn’t get enough open looks at the basket. We were trying to get Galloway on the point, but Perry had to give up the ball so many times because they double-teamed him all night.”

Gunnar Galloway helped out some for Crab Orchard as he netted 14-points for the Trojans.

The problem was that there wasn’t enough scoring from the other members of the club on the floor.

Crab Orchard, normally a pretty good shooting team, wasn’t very good on Wednesday night as they finished 21-of-61 overall and a not-so-good 4-of-24 from beyond the 3-point line.

Much of the shooting woes for the Trojans came about because of the quickness and length of the Pilots, as nearly every shot was contested in the contest.

“We knew we were going to have to come out and guard them. They are well coached and a good team. We knew we had an advantage of bodies (bench depth) and we kept them coming (off the bench) and we wanted to make it uncomfortable for them,” said Coach Brandtner, in his second season leading the Pilots. “I think we did a good job tonight.”

Also in the equation for Cairo was forcing Crab into 16-turnovers and then out-rebounding the Trojans, 35-24.

Everything numerically added up to a Cairo win and advancement.

It took some time before the athletic crew to take command of the game.

Most of the early points from Cairo came in transition.

Cairo converted four fast break opportunities in the first quarter into points as the Pilots led 15-14 at the end of the first quarter.

Five-foot-seven senior guard Jeffrey Dewitt scored five of his seven points in the first quarter on a 3-pointer from right wing and a drive to the basket.

“They are difficult to guard because they have so many kids that can score and get to the basket,” said Coach Brown. “Their athleticism really bothered us.”

Perry tried to keep the Trojans in the contest in the second quarter, scoring twice in succession in the middle of the frame.

His basket on a spin move in the lane followed by a 3-pointer from senior Tyler Deaton gave Crab Orchard a 24-23 lead with 2:55 remaining before halftime.

However the Pilots responded with an 8-2 run to close the second quarter.

Woodson scored on a drive to the basket while Taylor added four points on a pair of free throws and also a move in the lane.

Then Taylor dished to Houston for an easy lay in and a 31-26 halftime advantage.

The Pilots quickly got their lead to double-figures in the beginning of the third quarter with senior 5-foot-5 guard RaQuan Nelson and Taylor combining for eight more points for another 8-2 sprint.

Nelson scored on a fast break from a Taylor assist and then Taylor sprinted to the basket for a score.

Two free throws by Nelson and yet another transition basket by Taylor made it 39-28 with 4:58 remaining in the third.

The total 16-4 run changed the game completely for the Pilots.

“I always tell the team at halftime, the first three minutes of the second half you have a chance to come out and separate it a little bit. We knew it was going to be a dog-fight until the end no matter what,” added Coach Brandtner. “In a game like this, when everything is decided by a few points, every little run helps.”

Galloway and Perry each scored late in the quarter, part of an 8-3 run which featured a Galloway 3-pointer from the left wing on a set inbounds play.

When the 6-foot-1 junior forward hit 1-of-2 free throws in the final seconds, the Trojans trailed just 44-39 heading to the fourth quarter.

Coach Brown’s club was in striking distance but three consecutive turnovers to begin the final quarter allowed Cairo to kill some clock.

A basket by 6-foot-1 senior Bryce Gardner and a drive to the basket by Woodson off a spread offensive formation gave everyone an omen of things to come from Cairo.

Woodson’s score on a drive to down the middle of the lane put the Pilots up 50-41.

Woodson would do this two more times before the game’s end by spreading the floor.

A final 3-pointer for the Trojans from Deaton at the 1:55 mark got Crab Orchard to within 54-49.

That would be the last hurrah by Crab as the Pilots pulled away with a couple of fast break scores off of missed chances by the Trojans.

Gardner, who scored six of his eight points in the final frame, got a nice pass from teammate Keyonte Graham for a bucket and Taylor sealed the win with a transition basket and a conventional three point play.

“When you get this far into the tournament you aren’t going to get a lot of easy baskets. But we will take them when we can get them,” added Coach Brandtner. “We knew it was going to be a half-court game. And that is what it came down to.”

The Pilots shot the ball much better than Crab Orchard with Coach Brandtner’s club hitting 26-of-54 (48.1 percent) with most of that success coming in the paint.

Of the 35 rebounds the Pilots snagged, 10 of them were on the offensive glass.

Despite 18-turnovers, Cairo will now face Sesser-Valier, a 75-70 winner over Goreville on Tuesday night.

The title tilt will be played on Friday night at 7 pm.

“I’m really proud of this group and Perry was exceptional this season for us,” said Coach Brown. “Losing him last season hurt us but he worked so hard to comeback this season. We had a great year.”

1
2
3
4
-
F
Crab Orchard
14
12
13
12
-
51
Cairo
15
16
13
18
-
62

Crab Orchard (51) – Perry 9 0 3-3 21, 1 2 0-0 8, Ferrell 1 0 0-0 2, Tarlton 1 1 0-1 5, Galloway 5 1 1-2 14, Ray 0 0 1-2 1, Hutson 0 0 0-0 0, 2FG-17, 3FG-4, FT-5-8, PF-13.
Cairo (62) – Dewitt 2 1 0-0 7, Woodson 6 0 0-0 12, Nelson 2 0 2-2 6, Graham 2 0 0-0 4, Duncan 0 0 0-0 0, Taylor 6 0 3-5 15, Gardner 3 0 2-4 8, Houston 4 0 2-4 10, Henderson 0 0 0-0 0..
2FG-25, 3FG-1, FT-9-15, PF-17.

Fouled Out – Ferrell - Crab Orchard.
Technical Fouls – None.