OTSEGO ― Energy hasn’t been an issue on defense for the Holland Christian boys basketball team, especially in the postseason.
Each game, the Maroons have played well on defense and waited for the offensive spark to arrive.
It arrived quickly in the MHSAA Division 2 regional semifinals as Jake Holcomb stood at the top of the key, pump faked, drove past a Niles defender to the basket and dunked it over another defender.
The Maroons got the offense rolling after that on their way to a 71-44 win over Niles on Tuesday, March 3, at Otsego High School.
“I saw the gap and thought I was going to lay it up, but once I went up, (I was going to dunk it). That was fun,” Holcomb said. “We shot well and played together.”
Holland Christian advanced to the regional final and will face Unity Christian at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 5, at Otsego. Unity defeated the Maroons twice this season and won the OK Black Conference. The Crusaders beat Paw Paw 70-30 in the other semifinal.
“We talked about playing boring. Finishing off two feet, making great passes, making them play defense,” Holland Christian coach Brad Jansen said. “We shot the ball well, we had 24 assists, we moved the ball well and trusted the right play, and that is huge in playoff games.”
After Holcomb’s dunk, Titus Spencer followed with a step-back 3-pointer, Holcomb hit a 3-pointer and Spencer followed with a steal and another 3-pointer to make it 25-17 after one quarter.
“We just shot the ball well, and once we come out hot, we know we are going. It was fun to get some to fall early, and it just got rolling from there,” Holcomb said. “I have just been playing my game and trusting my teammates.”
Spencer finished with 24 and Holcomb had 23.
When that duo is on, the Maroons are tough to beat.
“We have challenged Jake. He is so athletic he can do that. He had a ton of rebounds and then was an option off that backside baseline. He is a great talent. When he puts that aggressiveness and rebounding with that, we have a great other option ― then we can find other guys who are open because of it,” Jansen said. “We talk about playing our best ball at the end of the year, and I think we are doing that.”
But the rest of the Maroons played well, too, leading to the rout.
Moses Vanderbilt started the second quarter with a 3-pointer. Holcomb again scored setting up another 3-pointer from Spencer to push the lead to 35-19 with 5:45 to go in the half. Two straight baskets in transition by Holcomb and the Maroons were up 20.
Simon Grotenhuis scored to baskets in the final minute and the Maroons led 47-24 at halftime.
Davis Alderink nailed a 3-pointer in the final seconds of the third quarter to push the Maroons’ lead to 63-32.
Alderink and Vanderbilt scored nine apiece.
Benden Olsen led the Vikings (18-7) with 16 points.
“They didn’t miss many shots in the first quarter and a half, especially from the outside. We started OK, but Donnie (Donovyn Williams) got a couple quick fouls and Bradyen (Favors) went down with his ankle. He gutted it out, but you could tell he was hurting. That put us in a bad position,” Niles coach Mark Haase said. “The way shot the ball in the first half, it was going to be a tough night for us no matter what.”
Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Jake Holcomb powers energized Holland Christian past Niles into regional final
Reporting by Dan D’Addona, Holland Sentinel / The Holland Sentinel
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