Long-lasting effect

The Quincy High School boys basketball team’s 41-40 loss to Granite City in the quarterfinals of the 28^th annual Collinsville Schnucks Holiday Classic could have a lingering effect. This is the only game the Blue Devils will play against its three regional opponents, which could hurt Quincy when it comes to the seedings for the Class 4A Edwardsville Regional.

It is assumed, if voting took place now, Edwardsville would be the No. 1 seed, followed by Granite City, Quincy and Alton. However, Alton also lost to Granite City by a single point (54-53) and could sway votes despite a 3-8 record because it will face both Edwardsville and Granite City again before the seed meeting.

How big of a deal is this? Edwardsville seems to be a lock for the No. 1 seed, sporting a 6-2 record and a 21-point victory over Granite City. Avoiding a first-round matchup with the Tigers, who eliminated the Blue Devils from the sectional three straight years from 2004-06, would make winning a regional title more viable.

Preview of the future

Quincy faces off against Urbana in Friday’s fifth-place bracket, getting its first glimpse of the latest addition to the QHS Thanksgiving Tournament field. Urbana (5-6) comes to Quincy next Thanksgiving, joining Algonquin Jacobs in the field. Quincy is still in need of a fourth team to complete the field, although discussions with several schools are currently ongoing.

Need to make the easy ones

Quincy missed the opportunity to put some separation between itself and Granite City by missing easy shots. The Blue Devils missed five layups and seven shots total within 5 feet of the basket. Cole Abbey missed a breakaway in the first quarter in which he was indecisive on whether to dunk the ball or just take the layup, and Zach Burry missed an open layup that would have given the Blue Devils the lead with two minutes to go in regulation.

Granite City scored on its ensuing possession and never gave up the lead thereafter.

Swing of events

With 39.6 seconds remaining in the third quarter, Granite City led 27-24 and was inbounding the ball under its own basket when Warriors coach Steve Roustio drew a technical foul while arguing with officials. Martin Kvitle hit a pair of free throws for Quincy, and the Blue Devils had the chance to milk the clock for a final shot and potentially take the lead.

Unfortunately, a turnover led to a layup by Granite City’s Devin Narvaez and an intentional foul by Abbey — he pushed Narvaez in the back on the layup attempt — gave the Warriors two free throws and possession. Narvaez missed the free throws and Granite City didn’t score on the additional possession, but the Warriors still took a 29-26 lead to the fourth quarter.

The boxscore

Granite City 41, Quincy 40

GRANITE CITY (7-4)

Player fg-fga ft-fta reb pf pts

Walker 4-12 2-2 6 5 12

Garcia 1-5 0-0 2 2 2

Mason 3-6 0-1 7 4 6

Grimes 3-4 0-2 0 1 7

Narvaez 4-8 2-8 9 2 10

White 0-0 0-0 1 1 0

Wilson 0-1 2-2 0 2 2

Bodi 1-4 0-0 1 3 2

Team 4

Totals 16-40 6-15 30 20 41

QUINCY (7-4)

Player fg-fga ft-fta reb pf pts

Dean 5-11 2-6 8 4 12

Abbey 4-14 0-0 7 3 9

Fairley 1-2 1-2 4 1 3

Kvitle 3-6 7-8 6 5 15

Davis 0-2 1-2 4 2 1

Burry 0-3 0-1 1 0 0

Salrin 0-0 0-0 1 3 0

Team 1

Totals 13-38 11-19 32 18 40

Granite City 11 7 11 12—41

Quincy 8 12 6 14—40

3-point field goals—Granite City 3-13 (Walker 2-5, Grimes 1-1, Garcia 0-3, Narvaez 0-3, Bodi 0-1), Quincy 3-9 (Kvitle 2-4, Abbey 1-3, Burry 0-2). Assists—Granite City 8 (Grimes 4), Quincy 5 (Kvitle 2). Steals—Granite City 15 (Narvaez 5), Quincy 10 (Abbey 5). Blocked shots—Quincy 1 (Dean). Turnovers—Granite City 18, Quincy 21. Technical fouls—Narvaez, Kvitle, Granite City bench. Officials—Troy Smith, Darin Hendrickson, Bobby Cole.

Missouri fans are getting an early introduction to life in the Southeastern Conference, and they better be ready to put their best foot forward.

The Tigers officially learned their first game as the newest member of the SEC comes Sept. 8 when they play host to the Georgia Bulldogs at Faurot Field. It gives the school and its fans the chance to say “Welcome” and “We belong.” It won’t have the tradition of being the world’s biggest outdoor cocktail party or any of the uniqueness long-standing SEC matchups have, but Missouri can make it a live, festive atmosphere.

I’m enamored with the matchup because Georgia is the alma mater of my favorite college football player of all-time — Heisman Trophy winner Herschel Walker. It’s been a long time since Walker ran roughshod through opposing defenses, but I still have the images of the bruising back with the Georgia “G” on the side of his helmet dancing in my head.

The rest of the SEC schedule is extremely enticing, too.

Alabama, the team set to play LSU for the national championship, visits Columbia on Oct. 13 in arguably the biggest regular-season home game the Tigers will have played in a long, long time. It’s an ESPN GameDay type of game if the Tigers carry momentum from this year’s eight-win season into next year and get off to a good start.

It’s still odd to think of Alabama as one of Missouri’s conference foes or the fact schools like Florida and Tennessee—which Missouri will travel to in back-to-back weeks next fall—will be yearly foes. These were often dream matchups, not every week things.

It’s going to take time for the Tigers and their fans to get used to being an SEC school, but come Sept 8. when the Georgia Bulldogs march onto Faurot Field, see the Rock “M” adorning the north end of Memorial Stadium and hear 70,000 fans voicing their support of the Tigers, it will feel like another football Saturday at Ol’ Mizzou.

Here is the Tigers’ complete SEC schedule:

Sept. 8 vs. Georgia

Sept. 22 at South Carolina

Oct. 6 vs. Vanderbilt

Oct. 13 vs. Alabama

Oct. 27 vs. Kentucky

Nov. 3 at Florida

Nov. 10 at Tennessee

Nov. 24 at Texas A&M

More of a priority

Since the Quincy High School boys basketball team doesn’t have any of its regional opponents on the regular-season schedule, Thursday’s quarterfinal matchup with Granite City in the 28^th annual Collinsville Schnucks Holiday Classic takes on added significance. 

The Blue Devils and Warriors square off at 6:30 p.m. at Vergil Fletcher Gym.

It came somewhat as a surprise the Blue Devils have the opportunity to make a regional statement. Granite City (6-4) knocked off Chatham Glenwood 48-43 in Wednesday’s opening round, handing the Titans just their second loss of the season. Some around the tournament questioned whether Glenwood (9-2) deserved one of the top four seeds prior to tip off.

The Warriors erased that question.

Quincy and Granite City are half of the field in the Class 4A Edwardsville Regional, joining Edwardsville and Alton. This is the first time since the IHSA went to a four-class system the Blue Devils (7-3) have been sent south for regional play.

At the point of things

Quincy coach Sean Taylor made a subtle adjustment prior to Wednesday’s 61-42 victory over Decatur MacArthur that could pay long-term dividends.

Junior guard Martin Kvitle assumed more of the ball-handling duties, freeing up junior guard Cole Abbey to focus more on taking quality shots. The end result was the Blue Devils shot 56.1 percent from the field and both players were key contributors offensively.

Abbey went 4 of 8 from the field and 1 of 1 from 3-point range, finishing with 12 points. He also got to the line a couple of times, making 3 of 4 free throws. Meanwhile, Kvitle had three assists and just two turnovers against a quick MacArthur backcourt. He also went 3 of 6 from the field and 2 of 4 from 3-point range to finish with 11 points and five rebounds.

In addition, Abbey was extremely aggressive defensively. Official tournament statistics show Abbey with one steal, but he was responsible for causing at least five turnovers and keyed an aggressive defense.

Still a concern

Free-throw shooting remains a worry for the Blue Devils. Quincy went 11 of 20 from the line, although the Blue Devils did go 8 of 11 in the second half. DeAngelo Dean, who has struggled from the line throughout his career, continues to make progress in becoming a solid free-throw shooter, going 3 of 4 from the line as part of a 21-point performance.

The boxscore

Quincy 61, Decatur MacArthur 42

MACARTHUR (2-8)

Player fg-fga ft-fta reb pf pts

Bartley 3-12 0-0 2 2 7

Ingram 2-3 0-0 1 2 4

Anderson 10-21 0-0 1 1 20

Coleman 0-5 0-0 5 2 0

Bursey 0-0 0-0 1 3 0

Lofton 0-1 0-0 0 0 0

Chandler 3-3 0-2 5 3 6

Allyn 2-3 0-0 1 0 5

Stone 0-1 0-0 1 0 0

Adams 0-0 0-0 0 2 0

Team 5

Totals 20-49 0-2 22 15 42

QUINCY (7-3)

Player fg-fga ft-fta reb pf pts

Fairley 0-2 0-0 3 1 0

Dean 9-15 3-4 9 0 21

Abbey 4-8 3-4 1 2 12

Kvitle 3-6 3-6 5 3 11

Davis 4-4 0-2 3 0 8

Elbe 0-1 0-0 1 1 0

Kline 0-0 0-0 1 0 0

B. Thomas 0-0 1-2 0 1 1

Burry 1-3 1-2 0 0 4

C. Thomas 0-0 0-0 0 0 0

Geising 1-1 0-0 1 0 2

Salrin 1-1 0-0 2 1 2

Team 5

Totals 23-41 11-20 31 9 61

MacArthur 11 8 9 14—42

Quincy 13 12 16 20—61

3-point field goals—MacArthur 2-11 (Bartley 1-5, Allyn 1-1, Anderson 0-4, Lofton 0-1), Quincy 4-10 (Kvitle 2-4, Abbey 1-1, Burry 1-3, Fairley 0-2). Assists—MacArthur 6 (Bartley, Anderson 2), Quincy 14 (Fairley, Dean 4). Steals—MacArthur 5 (Ingram, Anderson 2), Quincy 6 (Elbe 2). Turnovers—MacArthur 13, Quincy 13. Technical foul—MacArthur team. Officials—Tim Leuhmann, Bobby Cole, Ken Church.

Turnovers are critical

Three factors led to the Quincy High School boys basketball team’s first winless weekend of the season.

1. Turnovers. 2. Foul trouble. 3. Shooting.

In Friday’s 62-60 loss to Moline in a pivotal Western Big Six Conference game, the Blue Devils forced 15 turnovers and scored 14 points off those miscues. However, the Maroons did not commit a single turnover in the fourth quarter and only had three possessions in which they didn’t score. Quincy committed only three turnovers in the fourth quarter, but one of them led to Anthony Lindauer’s 3-pointer that tied the game at 53.

Overall, the Blue Devils committed 19 turnovers, leading to 25 points for the Maroons.

In Saturday night’s 73-64 loss to Monmouth-Roseville, the Blue Devils did a better job of forcing mistakes. They still didn’t convert when they needed to most. The Titans committed 13 turnovers in the second half, including six in the third quarter. Those miscues led to just five points as Quincy squandered an opportunity to take the lead.

The Blue Devils trailed 30-21 at halftime and closed within 32-31 with 5:16 to go in the third quarter. At that point, Quincy forced back-to-back turnovers but couldn’t convert either into points. In fact, Quincy turned the ball over after Monmouth’s second turnover there and saw the Titans convert it into Jackson Kane’s basket. Quincy had another chance to take the lead in the final minute of the third when it trailed 39-38. Sophomore guard Zach Burry’s steal started a runout that appeared to lead to a basket. However, Quincy guard Martin Kvitle was called for charging after delivering a pass for a layup.

Playing through foul trouble

Fouls certainly were a factor, moreso Friday night when DeAngelo Dean, who is Quincy’s leading scorer, played the final six minutes with four fouls.

Dean picked up his fourth foul with 2:14 remaining in the third quarter and Quincy leading Moline 45-39. He returned with 6:54 remaining in the fourth quarter with the Blue Devils still ahead 51-44. However, one of the better shot blockers and shot changers in the WB6 was forced to play less aggressive at the defensive end and that allowed the Maroons to get some easy looks in the lane. Four of Moline’s five baskets during a 14-4 run to tie the game came inside 5 feet.

“I thought he’s got to play,” Quincy coach Sean Taylor said when asked if it was a tough decision to bring Dean back with so much time remaining. “But he has to be able to play with four (fouls). It can’t be matador defense. He’s got to be able to play smart and yet still tough.”

Dean still contributed at the offensive end as his three-point play with 2:32 to go put QHS ahead 56-55 and his two free throws with 31.3 seconds left had Quincy up 60-59. The problem at the offensive end for Quincy was the fact the Blue Devils didn’t attack Moline’s interior defense despite Timmy Wages playing with four fouls the final 12:56. It was Wages who split a double team and skipped a pass to Drew Owens for the game-winning 3-pointer with 17 seconds left.

“They did a good job of going at D and we did a poor job of going at Wages,” Taylor said. “We’ve got to be a better job of recognizing.”

Saturday night, Quincy guard Cole Abbey fouled out with 5:09 remaining and the Blue Devils trailing by 14 points at the time. With the Blue Devils pressuring the basketball in hopes of rallying, the lack of Abbey’s quickness and aggressiveness took a toll.

Threes not falling

Prior to Martin Kvitle hitting a pair of 3-pointers in the final minute of regulation in a desperate attempt to bring the Blue Devils back, Quincy had made just 4 of 15 3-point attempts against Monmouth-Roseville and just 9 of 34 treys on the weekend. The Blue Devils finished 11 of 37, which is just 29.7 percent. The inability to consistently knock down perimeter shots puts pressure on Dean and Mike Davis inside and allows defenses to sag.

It was noticeable how Dean was double-teamed on almost every touch, and there were times both Moline and Monmouth triple-teamed him when he got the ball on the block. Although it left teammates open, the triple-team made it tough for him to kick out.

Overall, the Blue Devils are shooting 29.5 perccent from 3-point range (43 of 146).

Technically speaking

Quincy coach Sean Taylor was hit with a technical foul during the fourth quarter of the loss to Monmouth-Roseville when he walked onto the floor over a miscommunication about a timeout. Taylor called for a 30-second timeout, but one of the officials originally called it a full timeout. Using his hands to touch his shoulders to signal a 30-second timeout, Taylor demonstrated for the officials what he was asking for. One official not directly involved in the conversation came across the floor and slapped Taylor with the technical four.

With 11.7 seconds remaining in regulation, Quincy called a timeout but had used all its timeouts, resulting in another technical foul. After the game, there was some confusion whether the second technical on the bench should have resulted in an ejection for Taylor and a one-game suspension.

According to Kurt Gibson, associate executive director for the Illinois High School Association, the second technical is considered an administrative technical and is not given to the head coach. Thus, Taylor will be allowed to coach when Quincy opens the Collinsville Schnucks Holiday Tournament at 4 p.m. Dec. 28 against Decatur MacArthur.

The sophomores

The Quincy sophomores remained unbeaten in Western Big Six Conference play by knocking off Moline 58-51 as Alex Million had 13 points and Alec Shoot had 11. On Saturday, the QHS sophomores improved to 9-1 with a 54-49 victory over Monmouth-Roseville. Barnell Thomas led Quincy with 19 points, while MJ Kelley, whose grandparents are Quincy natives, led the Titans with 18 points.

The boxscores

Moline 62, Quincy 60
MOLINE (8-1, 2-1)
Player fg-fga ft-fta reb pf pts
Owens 4-5 1-2 3 2 12
Wages 6-11 3-3 8 4 15
Maffie 2-3 0-0 1 1 5
Lindauer 5-18 16-18 0 3 29
James 0-0 0-0 1 3 0
Larsen 0-1 1-2 5 5 1
Carson 0-0 0-0 1 2 0
Stabler 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Team 3
Totals 17-38 21-25 22 20 62
QUINCY (6-2, 1-2)
Player fg-fga ft-fta reb pf pts
Dean 6-10 4-6 9 4 16
Abbey 5-16 3-3 4 4 16
Fairley 5-8 3-4 2 3 14
Kvitle 1-4 2-3 3 2 5
Davis 3-8 3-4 7 4 9
Salrin 0-0 0-0 1 1 0
Burry 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Team 2
Totals 20-46 15-20 28 18 60
Moline 19 8 12 23—62
Quincy 16 16 17 11—60
3-point field goals—Moline 7-19 (Lindauer 3-11, Owens 3-4, Maffie 1-1, Wages 0-3), Quincy 5-19 (Abbey 3-12, Fairley 1-4, Kvitle 1-3). Assists—Moline 9 (Lindauer 4), Quincy 12 (Fairley, Kvitle 4). Steals—Moline 12 (Wages, Lindauer, Larsen 4), Quincy 2 (Dean, Fairley). Blocked shots—Quincy 1 (Dean). Turnovers—Moline 15, Quincy 19. Officials—Steve Spivey, Joe Thompson, Aaron Furrow.

Monmouth-Roseville 73,
Quincy 64
QUINCY (6-3)
Player fg-fga ft-fta reb pf pts
Dean 11-19 2-4 15 4 24
Abbey 2-9 0-0 2 5 5
Fairley 0-4 0-0 2 3 0
Kvitle 6-13 4-7 3 3 20
Davis 2-6 2-5 3 1 6
Salrin 1-3 2-4 4 1 4
Burry 2-3 0-0 1 1 5
Kline 0-0 0-0 1 0 0
Team 3
Totals 24-57 10-20 34 17 64
MONMOUTH (9-0)
Player fg-fga ft-fta reb pf pts
Gillen 2-5 2-2 5 1 6
Hunter 5-16 0-0 4 4 11
Kane 3-6 11-13 4 1 18
Cole 7-10 2-2 5 2 17
Smith 6-8 0-0 10 5 12
Merritt 3-5 1-2 0 0 7
Shelton 0-0 1-2 3 2 1
Myers 0-0 1-2 2 0 1
Glasgow 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Team 2
Totals 26-50 18-23 35 15 73
Quincy 8 13 17 26—64
Monmouth 11 19 12 31—73
3-point field goals—Quincy 6-16 (Kvitle 4-6, Abbey 1-5, Burry 1-2, Fairley 0-3), MonmouthHunter 1-4, Kane 1-2, Cole 1-2, Merritt 0-2). Assists—Quincy 11 (Kvitle 7), Monmouth 11 (Gillen 4). Steals—Quincy 9 (Abbey 3), Monmouth 6 (Cole 3). Blocked shots—Quincy 2 (Dean 2). Turnovers—Quincy 15, Monmouth 17. Technical fouls—Quincy coach, Quincy bench.

Stop Anthony Lindauer and you stop the Moline boys basketball team.

Well, that might not be totally accurate, but when the Maroons come to Blue Devil Gym for Friday night’s Western Big Six Conference showdown, containing Lindauer will be the Blue Devils’ focus.

“Lindauer is a great player,” Quincy junior guard Martin Kvitle said. “You can tell my how many times he’s come in our gym and dropped 20.”

And Blue Devil Gym must be a shooter’s gym in his eyes. Last year, Lindauer scored 27 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the field and 5-of-8 shooting from 3-point range as Moline completed a season sweep of Quincy with a 56-47 victory. Earlier, in the Maroons’ 45-42 victory at Wharton Field House, Lindauer led the Maroons with 12 points, but he was 7 of 8 from the free-throw line to quell any chances of a QHS comeback.

As a sophomore, Lindauer scored 11 points and went 3 for 5 from 3-point range in helping the Maroons to a 44-43 victory at Wharton. At Blue Devil Gym earlier in the 2009-10 season, Lindauer led the Maroons with 11 points, going 3 of 9 from 3-point range, in Quincy’s 52-41 victory.

Overall, he is 3-1 against the Blue Devils and shooting 48 percent from 3-point range.

“He’s a shooter that can just go off,” Kvitle said.

How true that is. Lindauer set a career high with 44 points during one of the Maroons’ victories in the Galesburg Thanksgiving Tournament, and he is averaging 21 points per game while making 21 of 57 3-pointers (36.8 percent).

As good as Lindauer is — there may be no better scorer in the WB6 — his numbers aren’t as important as the numbers the Blue Devils put up against the Maroons’ zone defense. In the last four games against Moline, Quincy is shooting 38.9 percent from the field and 26.9 percent from 3-point range. Those numbers need to improve for the Blue Devils to believe they can win the WB6 championship. Those numbers will improve is the Blue Devils find a way to attack the middle of the zone.

That’s where junior guard Cole Abbey comes in. Arguably Quincy’s best player at dribble penetration, Abbey needs to penetrate the middle of the zone and create scoring opportunities for his teammates.

“It’s hard to stay in front of him,” Kvitle said.

It may be even more difficult to keep Mike Davis off the boards. Kvitle believes Davis’ ability and tenacity to go after and get weak-side rebounds sets Quincy apart.

“It’s hard to rebound when you play a zone, which is where we could kill them,” Kvitle said.

The other aspect is Quincy needs more from its bench. If Jason Salrin, Carter Kline and Zach Burry can provide mistake-free minutes, it will allow the starters to rest without the team missing a beat. Even though the magnitude of the moment is big — the winner plays itself into position to challenge for the league championship — Kvitle said the team’s preparation and practice hasn’t changed. Still, the Blue Devils know this is a big game.

“It’s huge,” Kvitle said.

Road warriors

Quincy plays on two games on an opponent’s home floor prior to the Christmas holiday, and the Blue Devils learned they can weather the storm.

Back-to-back victories over Galesburg and Springfield — the Blue Devils beat the Silver Streaks 52-36 and the Senators 66-63 — marked the first time since 2007 Quincy has won its first two road games. That year, the Blue Devils won 46-44 at Alleman and 58-45 at Rock Island as part of a seven-game winning streak. Quincy’s current winning streak is at three games and could reach five before going to the Collinsville Schnucks Holiday Tournament if the Blue Devils beat Moline and Monmouth-Roseville on back-to-back nights,

What’s on tap

The Blue Devils will get to experience playing on a college floor when they visit Monmouth-Roseville on Saturday night. The game is being played at Glennie Gym  on the Monmouth College campus.

Postseason path laid out

The Blue Devils learned they will be heading south for regional play for the first time since the Illinois High School Association switched to a four-class system. Quincy will be in the Class 4A Edwardsville Regional along with Edwardsville, Alton and Granite City. Going into this weekend’s games, those three teams are a combined 9-10 with Alton at 2-6.

Edwardsville has been a tough postseason hurdle for the Blue Devils in the past. The Tigers eliminated Quincy three straight seasons — 2004, ’05 and ’06 — in the Springfield Sectional.

Quick to get back up

During the fourth quarter, Quincy’s DeAngelo Dean went down awkwardly in the lane at the offensive end, having rolled his ankle. Play was stopped briefly before Dean popped back to his feet and repeated “I’m up, I’m up,” loud enough for the entire gym to hear.

His ability to bounce back was critical to the Blue Devils’ comeback as Dean finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds, four blocked shots and four assists, including the assist on Cole Abbey’s basket that gave Quincy the lead 51 seconds remaining.

Alarming situation

During the second quarter of the sophomore game, the fire alarms went off inside Springfield High School and everyone was ushered out of the gym. The delay lasted nearly 20 minutes as school officials and local firefighters checked to make sure there was no significant danger.

An overheated popcorn machine caused the alarm to go off. The delay meant a scheduled 6:30 p.m. start time for the varsity game was pushed back to almost 7 p.m.

The boxscores

Quincy 52, Galesburg 36
QUINCY (5-1, 1-1)
Player    fg-fg    ft-fta    reb    pf    pts
Dean    3-6    4-6    11    2    10
Abbey    6-16    2-6    8    0    16
Fairley    1-4    0-0    4    2    3
Kvitle    5-10    6-8    3    1    18
Davis    2-3    1-2    5    3    5
Kline    0-1    0-0    0    0    0
Salrin    0-2    0-0    2    5    0
Burry    0-1    0-0    0    0    0
Thomas    0-0    0-0    0    0    0
Elbe    0-0    0-0    0    0    0
Elbe    0-0    0-0    0    0    0
Thomas    0-0    0-0    0    0    0
Giesing    0-0     0-0    0    0    0
Radovic    0-0    0-0    0    0    0
Team            2
Totals    17-43    15-22    35    13    52
GALESBURG (4-4, 0-2)
Player    fg-fga    ft-fta    reb    pf    pts
Ross    3-8    0-0    2    2    7
Johnson    1-9    0-0    2    2    2
Butler    1-2    4-4    7    5    6
Gernant    0-1    0-0    2    2    0
Carl    2-3    0-0    2    2    5
Gibson    3-9    3-4    5    5    9
Thompson    2-11    1-2    3    1    5
Nall    0-5    0-0    0    0    0
Cheesman    0-0    0-0    1    0    0
Wilke    0-0    0-0    0    0    0
Diggins    0-0    0-0    0    0    0
Morling    1-1    0-0    0    0    2
Eck    0-0    0-0    1    0    0
Team            6
Totals    13-49    8-10    31    19    36
Quincy    12    8    16    16—52
Galesburg    5    8    10    13—36
3-point field goals—Quincy 5-16 (Abbey 2-6, Kvitle 2-5, Fairley 1-3, Kline 0-1, Burry 0-1), Galesburg 2-21 (Ross 1-4, Carl 1-1, Johnson 0-6, Nall 0-5, Gibson 0-2, Thompson 0-2, Gernant 0-1). Assists—Quincy 9 (Fairley 4), Galesburg 2 (Butler, Thompson). Steals—Quincy 5 (Fairley 2), Galesburg 6 (Butler 2). Blocked shots—Quincy 3 (Dean 3). Turnovers—Quincy 13, Galesburg 14.

Quincy 66, Springfield 63
QUINCY (6-1)
Player    fg-fga    ft-fta    reb    pf    pts
Dean    7-17    5-9    12    2    19
Abbey    6-13    1-1    2    3    14
Fairley    2-4    2-4    3    0    6
Kvitle    2-9    5-7    3    4    9
Davis    8-11    2-3    8    3    18
Burry    0-0    0-0    0    0    0
Salrin    0-0    0-0    1    0    0
Kline    0-0    0-0    0    1    0
Team            3
Totals    25-54    15-24    32    13    66
SPRINGFIELD (1-7)
Player    fg-fga    ft-fta    reb    pf    pts
Balster    2-5    0-0    3    3    4
Pearl    1-5    4-6    5    3    6
Poole    6-14    2-4    5    4    14
Nelson    6-10    0-0    2    3    14
Wiley    5-9    4-4    7    5    14
Stephens    3-7    3-3    6    2    9
Whitfield    1-2    0-0    0    0    2
Dorr    0-0    0-0    0    0    0
Team            5
Totals    24-52    13-17    33    20    63
Quincy    10    24    10    22—66
Springfield    17    16    15    15—63
3-point field goals—Quincy 1-7 (Abbey 1-4, Kvitle 0-2, Fairley 0-1), Springield 2-5 (Nelson 2-3, Balster 0-1, Poole 0-1). Assists—Quincy 12 (Dean, Kvitle 4), Springfield 8 (Balster 3). Steals—Quincy 11 (Kvitle 3), Springfield 8 (Poole 12). Blocked shots—Quincy 4 (Dean 4). Turnovers—Quincy 17, Springfield 19. Technical fouls—Abbey, Wiley. Officials—Patrick Walsh, Ed Alexander, Jim Smith.

Albert Pujols isn’t the reason I love the game.

My 6-year-old nephew is.

Last summer, Sam played T-ball for the first time. Like most of the kids his age — they were all 5 or 6 years old — he played with the dandelions and the dirt. He got tired and hot. He even ran the bases at times with his arms out like he was flying like Superman or some other super hero. At the same time, he fell in love with the game, too.

He took his glove, bat and ball with him everywhere. If we were at my parents’ house for any sort of family gathering, he wanted to play catch in the yard. If we were at the farm fishing, there was always time for a break to throw the baseball and swing the bat. He even turned my sister’s living room into his imaginary stadium, acting like he was watching the Cardinals play.

That’s the Cardinals. Not Pujols.

It’s baseball he was enthralled with. Not Pujols.

It was my chance to spend time with him. Not Pujols.

It disappointed me that Pujols chose to leave St. Louis. It didn’t ruin my day. It didn’t change the fact I will be as excited as a kid at Christmas when Opening Day rolls around in April. It didn’t change the fact I have a bookcase filled with baseball books at home, along with a few autographed baseballs and bobbleheads. By the way, none of those bobbleheads are of Pujols. Whitey Herzog, Bob Gibson and Willie McGee. Not Pujols.

I had someone ask me why I wasn’t more upset about Pujols’ decision to leave.

Why? The birds on the bat mean more than the name on the back of the jersey.

The game means more than one player. The city, the stadium, the franchise all mean more than just one player.

The chance to play catch with my nephew or to have him swing and tell me he “hit it like one of the Cardinals” means more.

Trust me, there is no disputing what Pujols has done for baseball and the Cardinals. He is one of the greatest players ever, certainly one of the greatest hitters of the last 50 years. When his career is all said and done, he may be considered the greatest hitter ever. He may find himself on the Mount Rushmore of baseball. He certainly will have a place in Cooperstown.

What he won’t have is a statue outside Busch Stadium or the love and respect of Cardinal Nation the way Stan the Man does.

What we have is the game on the radio, the greatest baseball city in America, the legacy of players like Musial, Schoendienst, Gibson, Brock and Ozzie and the chance to cheer the Birds on the Bat once again.

And we can play catch with our sons, daughters, nieces and nephews. That’s what makes the game truly special.

One player doesn’t.

Each week, one of the Quincy High School boys basketball players and I will sit down and discuss what is happening with the team and beyond. This week, senior guard Carter Kline talks about the energy it takes to give the Blue Devils a boost coming off the bench.

I had the chance to sit down with Central-Southeastern’s Nathan Knuffman, the 2011 Herald-Whig Player of the Year, and Brown County’s Tom Little, the 2011 Herald-Whig Coach of the Year. We talked football, success and the future. Listening to what each one had to say:

Ron Santo’s family received the call this week the late Chicago Cubs third baseman always wanted to answer.

He’s headed to the Hall of Fame.

The Golden Era Committee voted this week to induct Santo into the Baseball Hall of Fame, 13 years since he was last eligible for induction on the Baseball Writers’ Association of America ballot and 32 years since he last played. During a teleconference to discuss the news, his widow, Vicki, said, “My initial emotion is, ‘We dared to dream.’”

Maybe she could have said, “Don’t give up hope.”

That’s what Santo, his family, his loyal supporters and Cubs fans always held dearly. They hoped, each and every year, the call would come. Each and every year, it didn’t. It almost became a campaign for those who knew Santo best to get him inducted into the Hall of Fame. Maybe he wasn’t a Hall of Fame player — that’s certainly debatable — but what isn’t debatable is Santo was a Hall of Fame baseball man. He was passionate about the game. He was passionate about the Cubs. He was passionate about being as much of a fan as he was a player.

His hope was rewarded. Now, Cardinals fans’ hope should be rewarded, too.

It’s the responsibility of the Golden Era Committee to put Kenny Boyer in the Hall Fame. One of the lynchpins of the Cardinals’ 1964 World Series championship team, Boyer’s numbers and honors stack up very favorably with those of Santo. Let’s take a look:

Santo played 15 seasons — 14 with the Cubs and his final one in 1974 with the White Sox — and finished his career with a .277 batting average, 2,254 hits, 342 home runs and 1,331 RBI. He led the National League in triples in 1964 and in walks four times. He topped 90 RBI eight times in his career and had 100 or more RBI four of those seasons. He was a nine-time All-Star and a five-time Gold Glove winner.

Boyer played 15 seasons — 11 with the Cardinals — and finished his career with a .287 batting average, 2,143 hits, 282 home runs and 1,141 RBI. He led the National League in RBI in 1964 and had 90 or more RBI eight times, including 111 in 1963 and 119 in 1964. He was a seven-time All-Star, a five-time Gold Glove winner and the 1964 NL MVP.

Santo might have an edge in power numbers, but Boyer’s MVP and the fact he helped the Cardinals win the World Series that year — he had two home runs and six RBI in the seven-game series victory over the Yankees — gives him a trump card the Golden Era Committee needs to recognize. If Santo is considered one of the best at his position of his era, Boyer deserves the same designation.

Here’s hoping Boyer gets a spot alongside Santo he rightfully deserves.