Spartans open with 93-57 win

CNA photo by LARRY PETERSON Sky hook: Anthony Davis, 6-10 sophomore from Clarinda, sends a hook shot to the basket against William Penn defender Jon Frank during SouthwesternÕs season-opening victory Monday.

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CNA sports editor A 36-point victory without your best player on the floor. Southwestern coach Jerry Drymon will take it. But, there’s still room for improvement when the Spartans start taking on nationally-ranked teams. The Spartans opened the 2007-08 campaign at home Monday with a 93-57 victory over William Penn JV. After being deadlocked 11-11 six minutes into the game, the Spartans closed out the half with a 50-30 advantage. A 24-6 run to open the second half put the game away with a 74-36 command. Ryckey Harper, 6-2 freshman from Raytown, Mo., led the Spartans with 23 points including three 3-pointers in the first half. Four other players scored in double figures, including sophomore Anthony Davis of Clarinda with 12 points and freshman Tyler Raasch of Nodaway Valley with 11. Laurice Ellison, 6-9 sophomore preseason All-American for the Spartans, served a one-game suspension for academic issues, Drymon said. “You have to start somewhere and we did a lot of things OK,” Drymon said. “But there are a lot of things we need to do better to be where we want to be.” Drymon said 16 turnovers against a JV team that wasn’t applying pressure indicates carelessness with the ball. Also, he wants better rebounding. “Laurice joining us next game will obviously help our rebounding and our inside defense,” Drymon said. “Scoring 93 points with turning over the ball too much and not being a solid rebounding team tonight, that speaks well to how we were pushing the ball up the court. I thought our defensive rotations weren’t bad and we contested shots pretty well.” Harper drained three 3-pointers in a row to begin the breakaway from the 11-11 tie. Harper, 6-2 freshman Kristian Williams of Australia and 6-2 freshman Chris Santiago each showed an aggressive driving style that resulted in short-range shot opportunities. “We got a lot of shots in the paint,” Drymon said. “That’s a lot better than relying on 3-point jump shots.” Santiago and Harper each hit shots from the wing around the 5:00 mark of the first half to open up a 42-21 lead. Harper already had 14 points at halftime and Davis and Santiago each had eight. The only consistent scorer for William Penn was Mike Strasko, a 6-4 sharpshooter from Albia who drained four 3-pointers on the way to 16 points. Terrance Morgan, Southwestern’s speedy 5-9 point guard from Dayton, Ohio, triggered several fastbreak baskets as the Spartans pulled away early in the second half. Southwestern had assists on 29 of its 34 baskets, led by Williams’ eight assists. Raasch came up with four steals. Davis and Williams had 10 rebounds and Davis blocked three shots. Southwestern’s next action is Thursday at Lamoni against Graceland JV. WILLIAM PENN JV (57) — Mike Strasko 5 2-4 16, Reggie Morris 3 3-5 11, Demetrius Mays 5 1-5 11, Darin Satcher 1 3-5 5, Deshawn Howard 2 0-0 4, Darious Porter 1 0-0 3, Raymond Bourne 0 2-2 2, Jon Frank 1 0-1 2, Donald Conner 0 1-2 1, Jordan Letzring 0 1-2 1, Reckey Johnson 0 1-2 1. Totals — 18 14-28 57. 3-point goals — 7 (Strasko 4, Morris 2, Porter 1). Rebounds — 36. Turnovers — 26. Team fouls — 23. Fouled out — Howard. SOUTHWESTERN (93) — Ryckey Harper 9 2-3 23, Anthony Davis 6 0-1 12, Tyler Raasch 4 2-2 11, Terrance Morgan 3 4-5 10, Chris Santiago 4 1-2 10, Kristian Williams 3 2-2 9, Drew Godwin 2 2-4 6, Will Wilson 0 4-4 4, Jamahl Depriest 1 2-2 4, Royce Phillips 2 0-1 4. Totals — 34 19-26 93. 3-point goals — 6 (Harper 3, Raasch 1, Santiago 1, Williams 1). Rebounds — 45 (Davis 10, Williams 10). Assists — 29 (Williams 8). Steals — 9 (Raasch 4). Blocked shots — Davis 3. Turnovers — 16. Team fouls — 24. Fouled out — None. Wm. Penn — 30 57 SWCC — 50 93 ____________ Larry Peterson can be reached at 782-2141, ext. 232 or lpeterson@crestonnews.com