Charleston gets outscored 31-12 in the second half in loss to Jackson

Charleston junior forward Dentrez Ewing (50) and Jackson senior forward Nick Wasilewski take part in the jump ball during the SEMO Conference Boy’s Basketball Tournament consolation semifinal on Tuesday at the Sikeston Fieldhouse. (Tom Davis/Southeast Missourian)

SIKESTON — Toward the end of the second quarter of its consolation semifinal in the SEMO Conference Boy's Basketball Tournament game on Tuesday, Charleston showed signs of optimism against Jackson.

The Bluejays went on an 11-2 run — after trailing 21-12 at the end of the first period — to take a 24-23 lead. A 3-pointer by sophomore guard Almareion Williams gave Charleston (2-3) its first lead since the early stages of the contest, but Jackson immediately retook the lead, ending the half on a 4-0 run, and would ultimately win 58-36.

“I’m asking my guys to do a lot,” Charleston coach Jamarcus Williams said. “I’m trying to sit back and let them play half-court defense with the zone, but the object of the game is to win. But, if the zone isn’t working, you want to be more aggressive, and then if that’s not working, you got to play more defense.

“I know they get worn down as the course of the game goes on, and that’s going to be the way it is until we get everybody back.”

Preceding Williams' 3-pointer, Charleston started its run thanks to an elbow jumper from senior Zatyrus Moore. Following that, a corner three by senior Luke Nichols, a driving layup by senior EK Davis, and another layup off a backdoor cut by junior Dentrez Ewing set up the long-range jumper.

However, once the second half started, the Indians put their foot on the pedal and never let off.

Jackson outscored Charleston 22-10 in the third quarter, led by junior Elliot Cowell's eight points and two 3-pointers.

“I felt like in the second quarter," Jackson coach Darrin Scott said, "we didn’t start playing bad, we had a couple of looks that were pretty good that didn’t go in and maybe forced a couple (of shots).

"They did a good job of deciding to use their quickness, put their head down, and drove it hard. We didn’t do a good job of adjusting. After the half, when we came out for the third quarter, for the first few minutes, I thought we did a really good job. When we were 10-or-12 (ahead) and were able to put a run to get it closer to 20, instead of allowing them to get back in it, it was huge. That's not something we've been good at so far in our first three games.”

The play from junior forward Nick Wasilewski was one significant reason for Jackson's impressive evening.

An athletic wing, Wasilewski showed off his skill-set at the rim and on the glass. He finished with a game-high 18 points while also adding 12 rebounds.

“What happened for him was he committed to going to the glass every time," Scott said. "He rebounded well. He got an offensive stick-back (and) I think that got him going well. I think that was huge. We’ve got to find a way to keep playing like that every game.”

Additionally, sophomore big man Clayton Ernst proved to be too much of a mismatch for the Bluejays.

He used his 6-foot-8 frame to create room in the paint, catch the ball on the low-post, and either score or get fouled.

Ernst had 14 points, eight rebounds and was a perfect 4-for-4 at the free-throw line.

“He’s playing better,” Scott said. “Last year, he struggled with confidence, but he played well at the end of the year. Then, in our last two games, I think he’s taken steps forward, so I’m hoping we can build on that. He’s a load down there when he plays as we need him to.”

Davis led Charleston with 11 points, and during the first half, the senior showed his aggressiveness as he muscled his way to the rim and created easy shots. However, in the second half, he went away from that.

He had eight points through the first 16 minutes, as Williams is still looking for more out of his team and believes more conditioning can help.

“We got to get in shape,” said Williams on the lack of aggression. “We got to play 32 minutes, regardless of if we have six players, seven players, or 11, we have to get in shape.”

Jackson advances to the consolation championship against Dexter on Thursday at 6 p.m. Charleston plays at Dexter on Dec. 18, with varsity starting at approximately 7:30 p.m.

CHARLESTON (36) — EK Davis 11, Dentrez Ewing 9, Almareion Williams 8, Luke Nichols 6, Zatyrus Moore 2. FG 14, FT 5-11, F 11. (3-pointers: Williams, Nichols, Ewing. Fouled out: none)

JACKSON (58) — Nick Wasilewski 18, Elliot Cowell 14, Clayton Ernst 14, Blayne Harris 9, Quinn Scott 3. FG 22, FT 7-9, F 12. (3-pointers: Harris 3, Cowell 3, Scott. Fouled out: none)