East Lansing boys fend off Everett to stay perfect
A bloody nose may have left the East Lansing boys basketball team without star Brandon Johns for a majority of the second half Friday night.
That wasn't enough to slow down the surging Class A No. 5-ranked Trojans.
Plenty of others stepped up while Johns was confined to the bench. And that collective effort helped East Lansing hang on for a 64-60 victory over Everett in a matchup of the CAAC Blue's top teams at Earvin Magic Johnson Gymnasium.
Malik Jones had 10 points off the bench and hit a pair of free throws with two seconds remaining to seal the win for the Trojans (13-0, 9-0 CAAC Blue).
"I've been in situations like this before," Jones said. "My team rallied around me. I missed a couple early in the game, but they just told me to stay positive. I knocked them down and we got the win."
The victory gave East Lansing a three-game lead atop the Blue with five league contests remaining.
Caleb Hoekstra had a team-high 17 points and 10 rebounds and Johns scored 14 for the Trojans, who never trailed. Hoekstra had 14 points in the second half and was key in helping the Trojans fend off a surge by Everett (7-6, 6-3) in the second half.
BJ Powell joined Jones in hitting clutch late free throws for East Lansing.
"We try to play around Brandon and we know he's the best player," Jones said. "But at the end of day, one person can't win and it's a team effort. When Brandon was out, we all stepped up big."
Jamyrin Jackson had 17 points, LeAndre Wright scored 14 and Doc Robinson added 11 points for Everett, which never recovered from falling behind 9-0 to start the contest.
"The first half we didn't come to play," Jackson said. "If we come to play like we fought in the second half, we wouldn't lose. That first half was just terrible."
Everett gave itself a chance in the second half, pulling even in the late stages of the third quarter on a basket by Wright. But Jones hit a free throw with 40 seconds left in the third and Hoekstra drained a 3 that closed out the quarter as the Trojans regained the lead.
And then in crunch time, Powell and Jones combined for the final eight points for East Lansing as it closed out the win
"These guys, they've been in these games before," East Lansing coach Steve Finamore said. "All of these guys are battle tested. Last year, Everett beat us three times. We blew a couple of those games, but these guys right here are tough and they are battle tested."
Contact Brian Calloway at bcalloway@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @brian_calloway.