By Dan Weber
NKyTribune sports reporter
Don’t call it a “rivalry,” Lloyd Memorial Coach Michael Walker said Thursday after his Juggernauts’ 64-56 No. 1-district-seed-clinching win against Erlanger rival St. Henry.
Danny Manning Jr., who led Kansas to the NCAA title in 1988 and has been the head coach at Wake Forest, was at the St. Henry gym Thursday night where he was recruiting Lloyd’s EJ Walker as the associate head coach at Louisville. (Photo by Dale Dawn)
Not yet. “We’ve got to win a couple more games to make it a rivalry,” Walker said of the two neighboring schools that are exactly 1.4 miles apart – front door to front door.
But this one surely helps get it there. And in doing so, it means they “beat a great coach like Dave Faust,” Walker said of the Crusader coach who set the record for most basketball wins in the Ninth Region last Friday at 461.
“Last year, we had the best record in school history,” Walker said, but “that was history.” This win gives the 13-7 Juggs an unbeaten 4-0 mark in the 34th District and the No. 1 seed for the first time ever.
A tough schedule means they’re “battle-tested,” Walker said. “It means we can compete with any team on our schedule.”
Which has always been the expectation as one of those teams that come along so rarely in Northern Kentucky – with two Division I players.
Jeremiah Israel, a soft-shooting, high-jumping 6-foot-3 senior guard showed why he’s already signed with Northern Kentucky with his season-high 32 points keyed by three early three-pointers.
Lloyd’s E.J. Walker (4) goes against St Henry’s Braden Fedders (Photo by Dale Dawn)
And sophomore EJ Walker, a 6-8, 220-pounder who has had recruiting visits to the likes of Indiana, Purdue, Louisville, Illinois and West Virginia this year and been offered scholarships by Xavier and Dayton while also being recruited by Wisconsin, Michigan State and Minnesota and with a visit to Ohio State on the schedule, had one of his pursuers in attendance.
Sitting in the last row was Danny Manning Jr., who took a Kansas team pretty much by himself to the 1988 NCAA title and is a former head coach at Wake Forest, was here in his role as associate head coach at Louisville and EJ’s primary recruiter.
The pair of Israel and Walker were a tough matchup for a St. Henry team that trailed close in a game that was tied five times with the Juggs up by a point at the first quarter (16-15) and halftime (31-30). And by two, 45-43, after three.
But a 9-0 run the first 4:42 of the final period proved fatal for the home team, down 54-43, and unable to get closer than seven points the rest of the way.
“Defense,” was Walker’s quick answer as to how that happened, “just defense,” as Lloyd switched from a 2-3 zone to man-to-man. But down the stretch, EJ Walker, who sat out three times with a couple of fouls that seemed a bit tick-tacky was able to play all the way to the finish, ending up with four blocks when the Crusaders came inside.
And Israel? “It’s his patience,” Walker said. “He’s letting the game come to him.”
Lloyd’s Jeremiah Isreal (5) battles St. Henry’s Cammeron Lemmond for the ball. (Photo by Dale Dawn)
“Hitting those first three threes helped,” Israel said, after hitting four in all. “The ball just felt good in my hands. And once they started playing up on me, I could get more of my guys involved. We’ve got a lot of guys who stepped up.”
Walker’s 14 points included a pair of early threes, which is what the colleges are telling him they like – in addition to his size for a sophomore — and good grades.
“They see him as a hybrid 4,” Mike Walker says of his son, who could be that big forward in college who can shoot from deep and bring the ball up the floor. “They like his versatility . . . that’s what’s so intriguing about him.”
What do the college coaches want him to work on? “Shooting,” Mike Walker says, “his shooting.” That’s the name of college basketball these days.
And what does his dad want to see from him? “Growth, just growth,” he says, “and stay aggressive.”
As for having someone like Danny Manning at the game, EJ says, “I don’t pay much attention to it,” even if there was a buzz in the crowd at his presence. “I’ve been down there a couple of times.”
Actually, from August on, he’s been lots of places. “I do all the driving,” Mike Walker says, and “I get tired.” Not his son.
St. Henry’s Braden Fedders (No. 40) making an inside move against Lloyd defenders. (Photo by Dale Dawn)
They do the shorter trips on Saturday, where they can drive up and back the same day, EJ says. “The longer ones where we have to stay overnight, we do on Sunday.”
“I like all of them,” EJ says of the trips. “Purdue (No. 1 in the nation) and West Virginia are showing a lot of interest.”
As to what they’re looking for, he says: “I think they want to see me stay composed under pressure . . . and my versatility.”
BOX SCORE
LLOYD MEMORIAL 16 15 14 19—64
SAINT HENRY 15 15 13 13—56
LLOYD MEMORIAL (13-7): Collins 1-1-2-7, Sebastian 2-0-3-7, Walker 2-2-4-14, Israel 8-4-4-32, Blaacker 1-0-0-2, Riley 0-0-0-0, Cooley 1-0-0-2, TOTALS: 15-7-13-64.
ST. HENRY (10-10): Shea 2-0-0-4, Ravenscraft 0-0-0-0, Kaiser 3-1-3-12, Grayson 4-2-10, Resing 1-2-3-11, Fedders 4-2-3-17, Lemmond 1-0-0-2: TOTALS 15-5-11-56.
