Men’s basketball: Gaither comes through in the clutch as short-handed Skyhawks edge Kishwaukee

DIXON – The Sauk Valley Skyhawks and Kishwaukee Kougars went back and forth for nearly 38 minutes Thursday night at Sauk Valley Community College.

With a few key stops in the final minutes, and three jump-shots in a row from freshman Jake Gaither, the Skyhawks stretched their lead to eight points, then finished off a 76-70 win.

[ Photos from Sauk Valley vs. Kishwaukee men's basketball ]

With 2:08 to play, Gaither hit a mid-range jumper for a 70-66 lead. Just 48 seconds later, he drilled another mid-range shot near the free-throw line, stretching the lead to 72-67. With 33 seconds left, Gaither delivered the dagger, swishing a right-wing 3 to go up 75-67.

“I was kind of getting hot in the second half, so we ran a play for me to come up, take the shot,” Gaither said. “I was confident, and I just knocked them down.”

“Those were huge shots. We knew he could do it,” SVCC guard/forward Petia Dogale said. “We see it all the time in practice, and he just stepped up today.”

SVCC went ahead 5-4 in the first 2:20 on a Davin Fields-Johnson putback, and built its lead to 16-13 with a Aarhek Lamb dunk midway through the first half, but Kishwaukee had answers early.

With a deep left-wing bank-shot 3, Jackson Chatman tied the game at 16.

Cameron Russell pushed the Kougars ahead with a left-wing 3 less than a minute later, and after back-to-back 3s by Chatman, Kishwaukee was up 30-22 with 5:28 remaining.

“We were just playing hard, playing together. We were moving the ball well on offense, and we weren’t trying to push anything,” Russell said. “We were working the shot clock to get it down under like 10 and get a good shot, and we did. We hit our shots at that time, so that helped us out a lot.”

But the Skyhawks wouldn’t stay down for long. With a 9-0 run, they retook the lead late in the half. Gaither hit a top-of-the-key 3 to pull within three, then Devares Whitaker made two free throws to make it a one-point game. Riek Riek tipped in a missed shot for a 31-30 SVCC lead with 1:29 to play in the period.

The lead changed hands four more times in the first half.

Carion Hale dropped in a layup to make it 32-31 Kishwaukee, then Whitaker nailed a right-wing 3 to move SVCC ahead 34-32 in the final minute. Chatman hit another 3 to give the Kougars a one-point lead, but Whitaker countered with a spin into the lane and layup as 11 seconds remained.

Kishwaukee got one final possession in the first half, but Dogale blocked both shot attempts to preserve the 36-35 SVCC lead.

“We had to pick it up on defense and start closing out on their shooters. Make them try to penetrate and do our job on defense,” Gaither said about how the Skyhawks rallied over the last five minutes of the first half. “And that was a big help.”

The Skyhawks grabbed nine offensive boards in the first half, and capitalized a number of times on second- or third-shot opportunities. With inconsistent shooting in the first half, the extended possessions were invaluable.

“They were super important because it was a close game almost all the way through,” Dogale said of the offensive rebounds. “We needed every board and every hustle play.”

In the first minute of the second half, Russell put back a missed fast-break layup for a 37-36 Kishwaukee lead; Hale converted a layup about a minute later to make it a three-point margin.

With two Lamb free throws at the 16:12 mark, the Skyhawks regained the lead at 40-39. Gaither hit a right-wing 3 just 26 seconds later to make it a four-point advantage.

The lead changes continued up to the 6:05 mark, when Kishwaukee’s Jalen Dale hit a mid-range jumper to tie the game at 64. But 18 seconds later, Atem Agot restored the SVCC lead at 66-64 after a quick drive to the basket. Riek put back a miss for a 68-64 lead just under the four-minute mark, and the Skyhawks never trailed again.

“I think they kind of turned it up a little bit, and it was hard for us to get it inside. So we were taking contested outside shots, and we just couldn’t hit them,” Russell said of Kishwaukee’s late struggles. “I think our legs were starting to get tired, and we just couldn’t hit those shots. And defense-wise, we just couldn’t box out and get a rebound.

“But things like that happen, and I’m just proud of our guys for working hard and staying with them the whole game.”

Without sophomores Devon House and Andre Brandon in the lineup, other Skyhawks had to pick up the slack – and they did. Gaither tallied 20 points, three rebounds and two steals; Riek racked up 14 points, 11 rebounds and two steals; Dogale totaled 10 points, six rebounds, five blocks and two steals; Whitaker compiled 13 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal; and LA Fayne added two points, 11 rebounds and three steals for the Skyhawks. SVCC finished with 45 rebounds, including 19 on the offensive glass.

Russell led the Cougars with 20 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block; Chatman chipped in 15 points on five 3s; Donavyn Sayles compiled 11 points and five rebounds; and Brennen McNally added 10 points, seven rebounds and three assists.