HIGH SCHOOL

Lakeview gets rare win over city rival Battle Creek Central

Enquirer's 5 Takeaways from BCC vs. Lakeview city rivalry boys basketball game

Bill Broderick
Battle Creek Enquirer

It's been so long since Lakeview has beaten Battle Creek Central in boys basketball, Spartan coach Steve Wichmann can't remember the last time it happened. But what he won't forget is how good it felt when it happened Friday night.

Lakeview defeated Battle Creek Central, 46-43, in this city rivalry Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference East Division boys basketball contest at Lakeview High School.

"It's been a long time since we've done this," Wichmann said. "In that time there have been a lot of close games and in those games, those guys have always been able to pull it out. But our guys had a lot of fortitude tonight and a lot of resilience and they kept fighting."

 

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Here are five takeaways from Friday's game:

Memorable win

Battle Creek Central has been on the winning side of this rivalry consistently for more than a decade, at least. So when the Spartans held off a late Bearcat charge in the final minutes, Lakeview's bench erupted to join the players on the court to enjoy the victory.

Tommy Moore led the way for Lakeview offensively with 14 points and led the celebration.

"This is a blessing to be able to beat Battle Creek Central," Moore said. "They have been talking for a while, talking about beating us, so this feels great to beat them. I'm ready to party right now."

Harrison Jewell of Lakeview takes shoots a breakaway layup Friday evening.

Holding On

Lakeview led nine points, 27-18, in the second half after a 3-pointer by Moore early in the third quarter. From that point on, the Spartans never trailed, but BCC kept it close throughout.

The Bearcats tied the game at 33-33 with a 3-pointer by Jermaine Morris with 16 seconds left in the third quarter. However, Lakeview took back the lead on a 3-pointer at the buzzer by Caleb Cary.

BCC trailed throughout the fourth quarter, however it pulled to within one at 44-43 after a 3-pointer by Josh Mann with 21 seconds remaining in regulation.

Lakeview put the game away with two free throws by Harrison Jewell with 18 seconds left.

"We never folded, which was great, but there were times when we could have pulled away and we didn't either," Wichmann said. "They hit a 3 to get close and make things tight late, but Harrison hit those two big free throws at the end. Really proud of these guys and happy we got it done."

Tayvon Hughes and Canyon Upston each played big for Lakeview (1-1) with good all-around games, both with eight points and a team-high four rebounds.

Tommy Moore looks for a hole in Battle Creek Central’s defense Friday evening

Defend the outside shot

Lakeview went into the contest with the idea it wanted to force Battle Creek Central to try and win the game from the outside. BCC finished 3-for-21 from the 3-point line in the loss.

"One of our keys was to keep them out of the paint, and I think I can count on one hand how often they got in the paint with the dribble as we forced them to shoot it from outside," Wichmann said.

Game 1 vs. Game 2

Lakeview opened the season at Marshall on Tuesday and struggled in a 31-point loss. The Spartans looked much better in their home opener Friday, possibly feeling more relaxed.

Lakeview was ready to play from the start and jumped out to a 10-2 lead.

Battle Creek Central was hitting the court for the first time this season, not playing on Tuesday when much of the rest of the area enjoyed openers and found itself in an early deficit.

"When you dig a hole, a lot of times you dig it a little too deep and we weren't able to get out of it," BCC coach Durant Crum said. "I think it helped Lakeview some to get that first game under their belt and I think there were some first-game jitters with our guys early."

Mann and Morris each had nine points to lead BCC (0-1).

WHAT THEY SAID ...

Lakeview coach Steve Wichmann: "These guys are so happy to get this and I'm happy for them. Not sure if they appreciate it as much as I do though, don't know if they understand the history of it or how long it's been since we beat those guys. But someday I think they'll realize how special tonight was... this feels great."

Bill Broderick can be reached at bbroderi@battlecreekenquirer.com or 269-966-0678. Follow him on Twitter: @billbroderick.