Goss: Joliet West back on proper path

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Joliet West's Morris Dunnigan (left). | File photo

Updated: February 10, 2012 8:32AM

When Joliet West completed its stay at the Pontiac Holiday Tournament with losses of 60-29 to Warren and 50-46 to West Aurora, the Tigers were sick.

They were humiliated in one game and gave away the next.

They returned to the firing line for the first time on Friday night, visiting crosstown rival Joliet Central. For those in the large crowd who questioned wondering whether the Tigers were headed in the wrong direction, they got their answer quickly.

West pressured Central into one mistake after another in going on first-half runs of 11-0 and 16-0. The Tigers led 42-20 at the break and coasted to a 75-40 SouthWest Suburban Blue victory.

They dominated inside, outrebounding the Steelmen 40-21. With 6-foot-9 Marlon Johnson in charge, that was no big surprise. But where this game was made was in the guard play.

“I have said before, when we have 10-13 turnovers we are hard to beat,” West coach Luke Yaklich said. “When we average 20 turnovers, we can get beat by anybody.

“Tonight, our guards dictated the tempo.”

That, incidentally, was no small accomplishment. Central had guards Curtis Parker, Jonah Coble, John Aversa and K.T. Carpenter on the floor for starters, with Jalen Heath among those off the bench, and they can play.

“Central does a nice job,” Yaklich said. “We watched film, and their guards got our attention. But we came out and played our best three quarters of the year.”

If Yaklich was not happy with what he saw from his guards — starters Morris Dunnigan and Carl Terrell and No. 1 reserve Ryan Modiest — at Pontiac, Friday was an about-face.

“We had to put Pontiac in the past,” Terrell said. “This was way better. We had a good week of practiced and played together as a team tonight.”

“I challenged our guards Monday at practice,” Yaklich said. “Carl was terrific tonight. Morris was solid and knows he can play better.

“Ryan came off the bench and played with confidence and was strong. He works hard. We’ve been waiting for him to have a game like this. He is a terrific young man.”

Yaklich said West had a “great week of practice,” which was welcome after Pontiac. “Our preparation was phenomenal,” he said. “Everything we wanted to do and prepared for, we executed very well.”

One indication West was on top of its game were the 11-0 and 16-0 runs.

“We haven’t been getting runs like that,” Yaklich said. “The reason is there have been two things that have killed our potential runs — our turnovers and missed free throws.

“At this point in the season, our shooting from the field is excellent, and most of the time our free throws and turnovers have been terrible.”

True to form, West shot 54.4 percent against Central. The Tigers committed 17 turnovers, but while the game was being decided, it was the Steelmen who suffered the killer giveaways.

West’s next game is Friday against Bolingbrook. Johnson will go against the Raiders’ big man, Ben Moore, who is having an excellent season himself. “Believe me, he has Marlon’s attention already,” Yaklich said.

While that duel will be a keeper, guard play likely will decide that game and beyond.

“We are still a work in progress,” Yaklich said. “This team has the potential to be very good, but it’s nowhere near that point yet.”

Friday’s game was a step in the right direction for the Tigers. More steps lie ahead.

Meanwhile, Central gets another chance to right the ship Tuesday when Bloom visits. Without predicting a Steelmen victory, I have a feeling we will see better execution from coach Jeff Corcoran’s team.

“They’re not much different than us size-wise, but they get after it and execute,” Corcoran said of Bloom. “They won the McDipper Tournament. We’ll see if we can come out and do what we prepare for.”