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Sports

ERHS Sports Notebook: Eagles Boys Basketball Hits the Road

Eagle Rock looks to rebound after tough loss to Marshall last Friday night.

Eagle Rock boys basketball coach Drew Lord wasn’t happy with at least some of his players during his team’s 58-42 loss to Marshall last Friday night. But what happened in the aftermath of the defeat might have been a good sign for the Eagles.

“We played well when we played together and ran our offenses and we struggled when some of our players wanted to play one-on-one ‘street ball,’ ” Lord said. “It looks like we have a few players more concerned about individual statistics than a team victory.”

But sometimes, airing out what just took place in a tough loss came be beneficial.

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“Overall the players were disappointed at the loss and came up with some suggestions about how to correct our mistakes,” said Lord.

Eagle Rock (6-4, 1-1 in the Northern League) will try to put in practice those suggestions this week in road games at Wilson on Wednesday and Lincoln of Friday.

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The loss against the Barristers came two days after a rousing Northern League opening win over Roybal. During that game, more things went right than wrong for the Eagles.

“(Roybal) had no answer for our two bigs,” said Lord, referring to Bryan Gyimesi and Malcolm Elijah. “This is the first time Malcolm and Bryan actually played together (this season).”

Elijah, who hurt his ankle over the summer and has struggled to get on the court, said, after the win against Roybal that the long wait had paid off.

“It helped me recuperate,” he said regarding the games he missed. “I went to the doctor; he gave me rehab. It feels good. I feel like I’m back to normal before I hurt it.”

Lord said he was pleased with Elijah’s performance in the win over Roybal, but that the  senior now had to concentrate on getting his stamina back.

“His fitness level is not where it should be because he’s been off for so long, but he had the right intensity, he knows what he wants to do, and it’ll be great to have him this season, if we can keep him healthy.”

What went wrong against Roybal? The Eagle Rock guards didn’t shoot well, and at times, the Eagles played into the hands of a Roybal team that seemed intent on turning the game into a street fight.

“We kind of let their coaches and their crowd and their team get to us,” said Elijah. “We have to stick to our plan and stick to our game.”

Lord, who said Jacob Garcia played well in the win over Roybal, agreed with Elijah’s assessment.

“We try to end up playing the game of the team that plays us, instead of playing our game,” Lord said. “We play their game.”

Warren Moore, the second-year head coach of Roybal, said he didn’t know what to expect because it is the Titans first year competing in the Northern League.

“I was really surprised,” Moore said. “It’s the first time seeing Eagle Rock play. We definitely know now (that) we’ve got to get ready for this team now. I can’t wait to play them at our house (on Jan. 28). I think it’s gonna be a whole different game. I guarantee that.”

But for the Eagles, who have three games prior to the rematch with Roybal — Eagle Rock plays Franklin on Jan. 26 — there are more immediate concerns: Those which came up during the loss to Marshall.

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