Edwardsburg boys drop fourth straight in 52-47 battle with Schoolcraft
Published 10:47 am Thursday, January 23, 2025
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SCHOOLCRAFT — Jared Frick says his Edwardsburg boys basketball team must increase its intensity and be more physical if the Eddies are to return to winning form.
After posting wins in seven of its first eight games, Edwardsburg lost its fourth straight game 52-47 Wednesday at Schoolcraft in non-league action.
“As a team we’re just struggling right now. In full transparency we had a great win over South Bend Adams in early January. After that win, I think we took a collective breath and felt like we were good enough. Since then our practice standards have dropped a little and we’re trying to work on that. We have to bring more intensity and be physical. Tonight we just didn’t execute well enough down the stretch to come away with a win,” Frick said.
“We”re in the middle of a stretch where we are playing a bunch of good teams and you don’t have time to work on a lot. We have to be at our best each time out.”
Senior Brody Schimpa scored 25 of Edwardsburg’s points on the night. Connor Solarek added seven, Matt Anders five, Joe Shively and Blaise Crist contributed four apiece and Reed Gates added two points for the Eddies, now 7-5 overall.
Edwardsburg finished the game shooting 16-of-47 (34 percent) from the floor and made 11-of-12 attempts (92 percent) at the foul stripe.
The Eagles (9-3) ended the night shooting 21-of-47 (45 percent) and made all five of its free-throw attempts (100 percent).
Schoolcraft was paced in the scoring column by Tucker Walther with 16 points. The Eagles’ 6-foot-9 junior center Jimmy Miller, who just returned from being sidelined with a sprained ankle, added 12 points and Ty Goddard contributed 10 points for the winners.
The Eagles used its size advantage to outrebound the Eddies 25-18. Anders, the Eddies’ 6-5 senior forward, ripped down a team-best seven rebounds for Edwardsburg, while Schimpa added five boards.
Edwardsburg fought back from a 10-point deficit on three occasions during the contest and pulled within one point of Schoolcraft, 48-47, on an Anders’ putback with 50.7 seconds left in the game.
Walther, a 6-4 senior, was fouled and he made both charity tosses to put Schoolcraft up 50-47 with 21 seconds to go.
Edwardsburg inbounded the ball and tried to get off a shot, but Miller used his big wingspan to strip the ball away from Solarek.
The Eddies quickly fouled Miller, who went to the stripe and made both attempts with two seconds remaining to seal the win.
“We have to be more physical and intense in those key moments,” Frick said.
Schimpa scored seven of his points in the final eight minutes and Solarek added four as the Eddies outscored the Eagles 16-13 before falling short.
Schoolcraft head coach Derrick Small was pleased with the win. It was the first game this season that the Eagles have had all nine of their players available.
“We dodged a bullet tonight. Edwardsburg is a real good basketball team when they play hard. They shoot the ball very well, are long, physical, athletic and well coached,” Small said.
“I’m just real proud to see our kids show some resilience near the end and hit a few key free throws. As we near the tournament, we have to be ready for the kind of ball pressure we saw tonight from Edwardsburg. Our game plan was to take away the high post limit their shots in the post and force perimeter shots.”
Schoolcraft scored the game’s first five points but Edwardsburg quickly evened the game at 5-5 following a Kodee Bienz triple and Shively’s bucket inside.
Bienz’s pair of free throws moments later gave the Eagles their only lead of the night, 7-5, with 3:53 left in the opening stanza.
But the Eagles fought back to seize a 9-7 lead entering the second quarter following Miller’s basket inside and Walter converted a steal into a layup.
Schoolcraft outscored Edwardsburg 14-9 in the second period. Walther was responsible for five of the Eagles’ points as Schoolcraft got a layup and free throw from Jaden Rieber to lead its guests 23-16 entering halftime.
“We didn’t come out with great intensity in the first half, especially right before halftime when we gave up a three-point-play. Our intensity level was much better in the second half. We just have to put it altogether,” Frick said.
Walther opened the Eagles’ third-quarter scoring with a triple that expanded his team’s lead to 26-16. The Eagles would hold that 10-point lead on two more occasions in the stanza. But Reed Gates made a pair of free throws and Solarek added one charity toss to pull the Eddies within seven, 39-32, going into the fourth quarter.
Edwardsburg hosts Plainwell Friday at 7:15 p.m.