Lawrence has too much energy

GIRLS BASKETBALL

By: Tim Falls
   The Lawrence High School girls varsity basketball team played with too much energy on offense against West Windsor-Plainsboro South.
   The Pirates defeated the Cardinals, 54-34, in the first round of the Mercer County Tournament on Monday.
   While Lawrence coach Greg Zenerovitz appreciated his team’s hustle, the hurried offense did not help the Cardinals.
   "We played with too much energy," said Zenerovitz. "It led to turnovers and bad shots."
   Lawrence gained a narrow, 15-14, lead after the first quarter, but couldn’t contain the Pirates after that.
   "What did us in were the turnovers," said Zenerovitz.
   WW-P South out scored Lawrence, 18-7, in the second quarter and, 16-5, in the third quarter.
   The loss sent Lawrence to a consolation game against Princeton, which will be rescheduled because of the snow.
   Zenerovitz hopes Lawrence will be able to channel its energy toward defense against the Little Tigers and in its last few games.
   "We have four or five games left," said Zenerovitz. "Hopefully we can end on a positive and get a few wins so we know that winning feeling going into the off season. Our JV and freshman teams have winning records, so they know that winning feeling."
   While the varsity girls stand 4-14 after the loss to WW-P South, the junior varsity and freshman teams have fared better this season with several strong wins. Still, the losing record hasn’t gotten the varsity girls down.
   "The girls stay positive," said Zenerovitz. "They hustle. They play hard and they hustle. They give me everything they’ve got in the tank."
   Ashley Russo led Lawrence with 16 points against the Pirates, while Jen Korngut scored six points, Zainabu Sillah had five points and Laquisha Spencer scored four points in the loss.
   With the entire team returning next season, the losses Lawrence suffered could be looked at as a learning experience, but Zenerovitz had hoped his Cardinals would catch on quicker this year.
   "We’re still making the same mistakes I though we’d learn from," said Zenerovitz. "We’ve got to stress defense. Good offense will come from the defense. Right now, we have too much energy on offense. We could make smarter passes and better decisions with shot selections."
   Given the tough losses Lawrence had this season, it’s understandable the Cardinals would want to increase their offense since they’ve been behind so often. Instead, Zenerovitz wants his team to focus more on defense to keep Lawrence in the game and play a more patient offense.
   Zenerovitz said his Cardinals sometimes play as if there was a shot clock and force shots instead of setting up a better scoring opportunity.
   "When you force a shot, that can be the same as a turnover," said Zenerovitz adding the energetic play can become more frenzied and lead to turnovers that only put Lawrence further behind.
   The Cardinals’ season may be winding down, but Zenerovitz still thinks his team has a few more wins in it and ending on a positive could help Lawrence approach its off season workouts with more enthusiasm.