The Chelsea Standard
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Bulldogs push Pioneers to limit
By Don Richter, Sports Editor
PUBLISHED: February 14, 2008
Chelsea's boys' basketball team battled hard, but lost to visiting Ann Arbor Pioneer, ranked No. 2 in the state in Class A, 60-52 last Friday.
Advertisement
"I was very pleased with our effort," said Chelsea coach Robin Raymond. "I was proud of the guys. That was our best basketball game of the year. Even though we couldn't pull out the win, that's the level of basketball that we want to play every game."
The Bulldogs (9-7, 7-5 Southeastern Conference) fell behind 10-0 to begin the game. Chelsea didn't score its first points until sophomore forward Tyler Zegazewski's basket with 4:42 left in the first quarter.
Though the Bulldogs opened the game poorly, they regrouped and outscored the Pioneers 15-7 the rest of the first quarter, trailing only 17-15 heading into the second frame.
In the second quarter, Chelsea played arguably its best basketball of the season, outscoring the highly-ranked Ann Arbor squad 24-10 entering halftime leading 39-27. Senior guard Matt Schwarze was on fire shooting-wise in the second quarter for the Bulldogs scoring seven straight points at one time and 13 total points in the stanza, including three triples.
"He hit some huge shots for us," Raymond said. "That really picked the team up and helped us sustain our effort."
In the third quarter, Pioneer came out strong, going on a 9-2 run on senior Will Courtney's three-pointer which cut Chelsea's lead to 41-36 with 4:22 remaining in the frame.
Heading into the fourth quarter, Ann Arbor had closed the gap to 47-43.
In the fourth quarter, Pioneer took the lead for good as Courtney converted a fastbreak bucket giving Ann Arbor a 54-52 advantage with 1:24 left in the game. The lead was Pioneer's first since the 5:23 mark of the second quarter.
Ann Arbor turned up the defensive pressure holding the Bulldogs scoreless for four minutes late in the fourth quarter. The Pioneers closed out the game sinking their free throws for the night's final margin.
Schwarze led Chelsea with 13 points, including three triples. He also had four assists.
Zegarzewski added 11 points and eight rebounds, while senior Stu Mann had eight points and four boards and junior Jake Mantel six points and three blocked shots.
Junior Brett Everding and junior Michael Roberts each netted four points, while senior Elliot Marshall and junior Michael Stratman each had three points for the Bulldogs.
Leading Pioneer was Courtney with 16 points, including two three-pointers. Senior Zach Williams (6-foot-5) had 14 points, while senior Matt Johnson (6-4) had 13 points for Ann Arbor.
Chelsea finished the night 19-of-35 for 54 percent from the field. Pioneer was 21-of-40 for 53 percent. The Bulldogs are the only team all season to shoot over 40 percent from the floor against the Pioneers.
At the free throw line, the Bulldogs ended up 9-of-13 for 69 percent. Ann Arbor was 15-of-25 for 60 percent.
Pioneer out-rebounded Chelsea 23-22, including 12-6 on the offensive glass.
The Bulldogs had 16 turnovers, while the Pioneers had 12 miscues.
Ann Arbor recorded 12 steals.
Despite the setback, Raymond remained positive.
"After falling behind 10-0, we were able to take control of the game," he said. "Pioneer is such a great defensive team, they jumped on us early. But we were able to force Pioneer to do things that they haven't been forced to do all season. We put them on their heels."
Raymond said Chelsea stepped up to the challenge of facing the state's No. 2 ranked team.
"We went nose-to-nose with one of the best teams in the state," he said. "I knew they'd make a run. They live by their defense. They picked up their defensive pressure and got easy baskets off turnovers."
On Feb. 5, host Chelsea lost to Temperance Bedford 57-54. The victory was the Mules' first of the season.
"We didn't play with enough energy," Raymond said. "We let Bedford control momentum. We need to be more consistent."
The Bulldogs led 22-20 at halftime.
Entering the fourth quarter, Chelsea continued leading 38-35.
In the fourth frame, the Mules outscored the Bulldogs 22-16 for the contest's final outcome.
Senior Greg Rebuldela led Chelsea with 15 points.
Mann chipped in 11 points, while Schwarze had 10 points. Mantel had six points, while Roberts and Zegarzewski each had four points. Marshall and Stratman each netted two points for the Bulldogs.
Chelsea next hosts Adrian Friday at 7 p.m.
On Tuesday, the Bulldogs host county rival Dexter at 7 p.m.
On Feb. 21, Chelsea travels to Ann Arbor Huron for a game at 7:15 p.m.
JV Basketball
Chelsea's JV boys' basketball team lost to visiting Temperance Bedford 43-40 Feb. 5.
The Mules led 28-25 at the break. Entering the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs captured the lead at 36-34.
In the fourth frame, the Mules outscored Chelsea 9-4 for the final outcome.
Pat Roberts led the Bulldogs with 14 points. Conor Tait added 10 points, while Colton Waterbury had eight points.
On Jan. 31, visiting Chelsea defeated Ypsilanti Lincoln 67-51.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 29-20 first half lead.
Heading into the fourth quarter, Chelsea continued leading 43-32.
In the fourth stanza, the Bulldogs outscored the Railsplitters 24-19 for the ending tally.
Scott Devol led Chelsea with 20 points. Ben Sauers had 14 points, while Tait had 12 points and Roberts 10 points.
The Bulldogs next host Adrian Friday at 5:30 p.m.
On Feb. 19, Chelsea hosts Dexter at 5:30 p.m.
On Feb. 21, the Bulldogs visit Ann Arbor Huron for a game at 5:30 p.m.
Not all stories are guaranteed to appear
online. The Web edition contains a reasonable
sampling of the print edition stories.
For the most complete news coverage, we invite you to
subscribe
to the print edition of the paper.
Expanded
Web
Coverage
TOP JOBS
