By Dennis Bowling
Beecher junior Adyn McGinley knew the Bobcats have been struggling, as they’ve lost four out of their last five contests. Adding to the problem, senior starting center Rio Llamas is out with a right ankle sprain.
Although the Bobcats had a rough first quarter with the feisty Illinois Lutheran Chargers, they were able to pull away using a plethora of trey shots in the second quarter on February 3.
McGinley, a 6-foot guard, who is one of the outstanding players in this area, registered a team-high 23 points, had six assists, and four steals, which included a clutch pair of treys in the second quarter, to help Beecher beat Illinois Lutheran, 86-53, in the opening round of the River Valley Conference Tournament in Beecher.
In the first quarter, without starter Llamas, the amped-up Chargers held a 15-9 lead late in the stanza, but Bobcat junior Jack Hayhurst’s (13 points) trey cut the Illinois Lutheran advantage to 15-12 at the close of the period.
“We knew that Rio would not be playing due to his ankle injury,” said McGinley, “and they were able to control the ball, but our pressure defense got us going, and we came out firing shots and making our treys. That helped our offense.”
In the second quarter, the Bobcats went absolutely trey crazy to get back into the game. They managed to outscore the Chargers by a 14-3 count to gain a 26-18 lead.
McGinley and Hayhurst each had treys, which tied the score at 18-all. Trevor Stout’s (7 points) and McGinley’s treys then gave Beecher a 24-18 advantage. As McGinley drove to the basket, he was fouled, and made a pair of free throws, for a 26-18 lead.
With time running out in the stanza, Beecher’s Ethan Rydberg’s (11 points, 7 assists) pair of free throws gave the Bobcats a 36-29 half time lead, which was followed by a 64-41 lead at the close of the third quarter.
McGinley was pleased with the play of the Bobcats, “We all played very well, and Nate (Diachenko) stepped up his defensive play.”
Diachenko, a junior forward, finished with nine points, with fellow junior Zachary Johnson adding 14 points and 5 rebounds.
“Zachary always is grabbing rebounds and always hustling, too,” said McGinley. “Jack (Hayhurst) also played real well.”
Johnson was glad his team was able to pull things together and rally in the second quarter, “We struggled in the first quarter, but we were able to get things going in the second quarter. Adyn always makes things happen for us, plus we can always count on Jack (Hayhurst), who can shoot.”
With the win, Beecher is 21-5 overall, while the Chargers fall to 5-19. The Bobcats have advanced to play in the second round of the RVC tournament, which should be next Friday, February 10.
Update: On Saturday, February 4, the Bobcats beat Watseka, 74-37, improving to 22-5. Zack Johnson led the Bobcats with 15 points, while Adyn McGinley added 14, and Nate Diachenko finished with 5.