Seacrest Just What Lely Needed

A road game against Seacrest was just what the doctor ordered for Fritz Jacques and his injury and illness riddled Lely Trojans. After a tight first half, the Trojans wore down an outmanned Seacrest squad, 64-43, Friday night.

Lely’s relentless full-court pressure took its toll on Seacrest’s six-man roster.

“Slow start, man,” Jacques said, explaining Lely’s slow start. "And we were taking too many three pointers. They zoned us up so we try to push the tempo a little bit, grab a rebound and push the tempo. And our boys took coaching. So I was happy with that. 

Jacques attributed his team’s slow start to a hangover following a win the night before over city rival Golden Gate (3-7), 55-46.

"We had a very emotional win last night,” Jacques said. "I told them not to sleep on these guys because Alex Soderlund and Ben Cassano are very good basketball players. And Issac Leon, their freshman point guard can really handle it. So it worried me a little bit. We did a good job guarding them at least."

Jacques likes what he’s seeing from his roster as they become healthier.

“We got the little bug out of us,” he said. "We got a couple guys back. We still need to get Gage Rice back. He just had surgery.”

Rice, a junior, is a transfer from Marco Island Academy.

"We can't wait to have him back,” Jacques said, "because he is a kid that any coach would love to have. He plays so hard. Coach's son. So he takes coaching. He also has some nice moves. And, you know, he can shoot it. I'm excited to get him back. My boy, that's a diamond right there. Boy, I got me a diamond."

Lely (3-5) will stay busy during the holidays with appearances in several tournaments, starting on Wednesday, December 20, at the Palmetto Ridge Holiday Shootout.