Game 83: Macomb @ Galesburg (Boy's Basketball)

Game 83
Macomb @ Galesburg (Boy's Basketball)
(1/8/11)

The plan was to sneak out to Memorial Gym and take in part of the Monmouth College/Knox College basketball game.  It was about 4:30 when I left GHS, and headed over to Knox.  There wasn't a parking space within 2 blocks.  I figured by the time I found a parking spot, walked inside and sat down, it would be about time to turn around and head back out to the high school to prepare for the night broadcast.



So, I just tuned into Sunny 97.7 WMOI and listened to the end of the women's game, with Tom Peterson and Pat Repp on the broadcast.  They transitioned to the men's game, with Jason Bates calling the play-by-play.  I also stopped off for a 5-hour energy...and it didn't work.  I had a pretty bad headache all day, not sure what from, maybe lack of sleep.

Back at the high school, I arrived a few seconds before the Macomb buses came rolling in.  I went down and talked to some of the Macomb contingent.  Macomb statistician Dan Rouse gave me the updated Macomb stats and the series history between Macomb and Galesburg.  We talked extensively about the Bombers and last night's game between the Bombers and the Monmouth-Roseville Titans. 

I also spoke with Galesburg P.A. announcer Gary Mitchell.  He arrived from the Carl Sandburg College women's basketball game, in which they won.  Gary says the Chargers have improved greatly over the course of the season.

Williamsfield Bombers basketball coach Bob Anderson was in the gym, and I talked with him about the upcoming Inter-County Athletic Conference tournament that Williamsfield is hosting next week.  I will be there broadcasting all three games on Monday and Wednesday. 

As the sophomore game tipped off, I conducted my pregame interview with Galesburg coach Mike Reynolds.  He mentioned how each game the team had scouts at, were packed on Friday night (Galesburg was off Friday).  The Streaks had scouts at Richwoods, Macomb and the Alleman/Rock Island game at Augustana College's Carver Center.

After the 1st quarter ended, I headed back up to the broadcast booth.  K100's crew was next to us, so I didn't have my typical sprawled out room.  Jimmie had tried texting me, three times actually, but my phone was left up in our booth.  Due to his cold, he wanted to save his voice for the broadcast, so I went down and interviewed Macomb coach Danny Watson, and then fetched a water from the concession stand.  Galesburg girl's golf coach Marcy Davis and golfer/basketball player Jessica Lieber waited on me.

Both Macomb and Galesburg came in on winning streaks.  Galesburg is on a 6-game winning streak, getting victories over Bettendorf, Sterling, Effingham, Rantoul, Mattoon, and Teutopolis.  Meanwhile, Macomb enters on a 13-game winning streak.  Their only losses are to Class 3A teams; Manual and (Chicago) Marshall. 

Terry Glasgow's Dual Interest Tonight
The Galesburg sophomores picked up the win over Macomb, a tight 50-46 win.  The sophomores are now 4-11 on the season.  During the sophomore game, former Monmouth College men's basketball coach Terry Glasgow came to us a few times for updates on the Monmouth/Knox game.  He came up to the booth during halftime of the sophomore game to get an update and said, "I have a little bit of interest in the game," laughing.  The Fighting Scots prevailed in that game across town, 88-77.

Game Time
The visiting Bombers clearly had the edge at the start of the varsity game, jumping out to a 15-8 lead after one quarter.  The Silver Streaks shot poorly in the 1st half, but trailed by only two points at halftime, 22-20.  As expected, both teams played fundamentally well, with limited turnovers.  In total, Galesburg committed just 7 turnovers, while Macomb finished with just 10 turnovers.

Macomb jumped out to a 38-34 lead after three quarters, but Galesburg pounced early in the 4th quarter, leading at one point by 6 points before Macomb rallied back.  It was back and forth for the first few minutes of the final frame, but Galesburg was able to take advantage of free throw shooting, and better shooting from the field.

Speaking of shooting, the Silver Streaks couldn't have shot better from the floor in the 4th quarter, going a perfect 7-7 from the field in the last 8 minutes.  The Streaks were 10-14 from the free throw line.  On the other hand, Macomb was just 1-14 from the field in the 4th quarter.

Brandon Thompson finished with a game-high 22 points and went 12-12 from the free throw line.  He was named our First Glass "Breakout Player of the Game."  Dalton Davis scored 15 points and Chad Thompson added 11 points.  Trimaine Carson scored 7 points for the Silver Streaks, played in only the 2nd half and had a great game.  In fact, Jimmie said it was probably the most solid effort of the season by Carson.  Nick Heille led the Bombers with 18 points.

Game 83 Miles:  55