About the only place Springfield High didn't hit a 3 from was half-court as the Senators rolled past Southeast ahead of City Tournament.
Springfield High’s boys basketball team put on a shooting display for the Senators’ fans in one of the last games at Willard Duey Gymnasium.
The Senators were hitting 3-pointers from everywhere: the top of the arc, the corners, the wings. About the only places SHS didn’t hit from were from Lewis Street to the east or Parker Avenue to the west.
Logan Peach dialed in five 3s in the first half, Will Collins was 3-for-3 from deep in the second quarter and the Senators shot 10 of 12 from behind the 3-point line in the first half in a 74-45 running-clock win over Southeast in a Central State Eight Conference matchup on Tuesday.
“I don’t know if I’ve seen a better performance either,” first-year Springfield High coach Kevin Causley said. “We’ve been stressing all year and really doing some player development, trying to focus on getting outside shots and taking good, efficient shots. Tonight, I think we took some efficient shots; we were really just on fire.”
Throw in two highlight-reel dunks by Elijah Wade with some exciting fastbreak layups, and the SHS fans were cheering for almost all 32 minutes.
Peach was the game’s high scorer with 17 points while Wade finished with 15 and Collins put up 11, all in the second quarter. J’Mere Macon also had 10 points for the 12-6 (overall, 5-1 CS8) Senators. In fact, 11 of 12 of the SHS players who saw the court scored.
“All around tonight, we had guys from top to bottom on our bench able to make some shots,” Causley said.
It wasn’t just the Solons’ fans getting in on the cheering and celebrating. Each time the Senators hit a big shot, the bench roared to life, standing up, celebrating and cheering on their teammates.
“I put the time in the gym, I get the reps up,” Peach, a senior, said. “Tonight, they just happened to fall. I love to see it, but the more important thing is we got the win over an in-city rival.”
Causley said he loved how infectious the mood was for his team, including his starters when they were on the bench.
“It’s what we need,” Causley said. “We’ve hit some lulls in the season where we’ve needed some energy from our guys. I think it felt good for those guys to hit shots and for the energy on the bench to be alive. Hopefully we can carry this through in the games to come.”
Collins said he let the offense come to him after making sure to focus on his work defensively.
“I started it on the defensive end; I wanted to guard full-court and show people I can slide my feet, so it carried over to the offensive end for me,” Collins, also a senior, said.
Southeast (3-12, 0-6 CS8) would’ve been in the contest at halftime had the Senators had a pedestrian shooting performance.
“They came out knocking the shot down,” Southeast coach Wayne Hamilton said. “I thought we were prepared for that, but apparently, we weren’t.”
The City Tournament begins Wednesday, Jan. 21 at the Bank of Springfield Center with a pair of girls games. The boys side will start the next day. The four city coaches will vote on tournament seeds Wednesday, Jan. 14.
Causley, a former Peoria Manual assistant, is looking forward to his first event.
“I’ve tried to temper it back a little bit, let the days come and just enjoy the experience,” he said. “We’ve got a little bit of expertise and advice on what I can expect, but really, I want to take it all in and enjoy the experience. This is my first rodeo here in the city of Springfield; the (Showcase Saturday on Dec. 6 at the BOS Center) was unbelievable, so I can’t imagine.”
With the team’s success so far, Springfield High is looking to win its first City Tournament outright title since 2009. Collins and Peach also think the team can expect even more.
“I think we’re playing very good, and our ceiling is the highest it’s been in a long time,” Collins said. “I’m happy to see where it’s going to take us.”
Peach added, “I feel like we’re a well-oiled machine this year. I think we have the ability — the sky is the limit, we could go to state — it just all depends on how we play moving forward.”
Hamilton, who has guided the Spartans to three wins in their last six games after an 0-9 start, has seen growth, but knows there’s plenty of room for additional improvement.
“We’re just trying to get better day by day,” he said. “We’re learning the things that we want to do and trying to accomplish those things and playing together as a team.”
Me'Khy Holmes led Southeast with 14 points.
NOTE: Springfield High will eventually move into the new gym on campus being built, but District 186 officials are still uncertain if, or when this season, the Senators basketball teams could play a game there.
Contact Ryan Mahan: 788-1546, [email protected], Twitter.com/RyanMahanSJR.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: IHSA boys basketball: Peach, Collins put on offensive show for Springfield High
Category: General Sports
