More outlasts Lions for 61-54 win

New Berlin - Saint Thomas More outlasted New Berlin Eisenhower, 61-54, on Friday in St. Francis in a fast-paced, back-and-forth, physical battle of top-rated area teams.

The two squads punched and counter-punched, exchanging the slimmest of leads. Through the first three quarters, neither led by more than six points.

The lead changed hands nine times in the fourth quarter before More pulled ahead 52-49 with 2 minutes, 30 seconds left to play, courtesy of back-to-back baskets - a slashing layup by senior Justin Shervey and a one-handed floater in the lane by senior Derek Trader.

After the teams exchanged scores yet again, the Cavaliers chewed nearly a minute off the clock, forcing the Lions into foul mode.

But even then, the Cavaliers didn't readily put resilient Eisenhower away. More only hit on one of five late free throw attempts, allowing the Lions to rebound and race back up court. But the contested layups and deep set shots they mustered mostly misfired, ending as More rebounds.

Sophomore's jinx

The Cavaliers finally put the game on ice by winning one such defensive rebound, skipping the ball around the backcourt one step ahead of Eisenhower's frantic pressure and then lobbing it down court to a blazing Daymeann Stewart. The sophomore guard took it straight in for a layup, giving the Cavaliers a 57-51 lead with just 12 seconds left.

"Give some credit to Daymeann," said More's head coach, Pat Ross. "He's just a sophomore, but he's very mature and talented, and he picked up his game at the right time."

Stewart had six points in the decisive quarter and 11 overall, to go with a handful of assists.

"I was nervous, being in a game like this as a sophomore," he said. "I got excited, too. But I have good teammates. They brought me up when I was down, and straightened me out and humbled me when I got too excited.

"The big thing was to push the ball; keep attacking. That was a key that we talked about," he said.

The Lions' share of action

That mentality served the Cavaliers well in a game that alternated between rough and rugged interior battles and all-out fast breaks. Neither team shot particularly well from the perimeter.

Leading the way for Eisenhower was the inside-outside duo of sophomore guard Reed Timmer and senior forward Keith Kahlfeldt. Timmer was everywhere on the floor, snaring rebounds, making steals, directing traffic and driving to the hole. He finished with 17 points and 6 assists.

Several of those assists went to Kahlfeldt, who befuddled multiple More defenders with a variety of power post moves, hooks and short jumpers.

"Man, he has a nice touch in the post. He's just a smooth scorer," said Ross.

Kahlfeldt finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds and several exciting blocks.

The key to slowing the Lions, Ross said was a series of halftime adjustments.

"We switched D," he said. "I can't say from what to what. Just that we switched. We also talked about playing hard and executing. Don't just make the cut. Dive in there and pop out. Even when we were down, we knew we had to keep coming; maintain the effort. Eisenhower definitely wasn't going to quit."

"It was also good that Trevor Wattawa came alive," he added. "We certainly know what he's capable of."

The senior forward poured in 21 points - on cuts and layups, drives and jump shots, steals and put backs.

"You know, ultimately that one could have gone either way," said Eisenhower coach David Scheidegger. "A few bounces, a few made shots."

"Give credit to Thomas More," he said. "They're a good team, they're well-coached. Pat Ross is the real deal. I have all the respect in the world for him. They really play as a team.

"We'll work on execution in the days ahead," he said. "But make no mistake, this was a good team, and I feel confident that we're right there."

St. Thomas More (6-1, 8-3) leads the Blue Division while Eisenhower (7-1, 9-2) leads the Black Division in the Woodland Conference.

Better against Greenfield

Against a much weaker opponent in Greenfield (0-7, 0-9) three days earlier, the Lions has less trouble.

After a 24-23 halftime lead, the Lions blew up the Hustlin' Hawks, 38-21, in the second half Jan. 3 to win, 62-44.

The Lions exploded for a 27-14 third-quarter advantage to take a 51-37 lead into the final period.

Eisenhower's one-two combination of Timmer and Kahlfeldt led the way with 19 and 16 points, respectively. Nick Jablonski led Greenfield with 16 points.

The Lions hosted Greendale (3-4, 3-8) on Tuesday and now hit the road for games with South Milwaukee (5-2, 7-3) on Friday and a non-conference game at Muskego (2-9) on Tuesday.