After the last-minute postponement of the Farragut game on Friday, Feb. 26, the Lane Tech boys basketball team finally opened its season on Monday, Mar. 1, against Jones. The Lane boys (no longer known as the Indians) beat Jones 40-34, in a defensive struggle.
Both teams came out of the 360-day layoff since their last high school basketball game, very rusty. Shots just would not fall. These jitters combined with very strong defensive efforts by both teams meant that after one quarter of basketball, the score was Lane 7, Jones 5.
The second quarter was not a whole lot better. The score at the half was Jones 15, Lane 12.
“First game jitters; that’s gonna happen, especially after a year layoff and only having a couple practices,” said Lane Tech head coach and athletic director Nick Logalbo.
Things teams settled down at halftime and felt a little more normal, well COVID normal. Shots started falling. It turned into an exciting back and forth game. Lane’s junior guard Sean Molloy sparked the Lane boys with nine of this game high 14 points in the third quarter. Interestingly, Sean Molloy is the youngest brother of Lane’s girls’ varsity basketball coach Megan Molloy.
With 1:06 left on the clock in the fourth quarter, Jones senior forward Niko Rosich tied the game at 37 with a long three-pointer.
Lane point guard senior Justin Brown quickly brought up the ball and with 50 seconds to go dished to Molloy. Off the shot fake, Molloy slashed into the lane and was called for a charge. With the foul, the ball went over to Jones with the game still tied with 39 second remaining.
Initially, Jones looked like it would play for the last shot but Rosich broke for the basket missing a layup. Molloy scrambled for the ball and dashed up court. Weaving way through defenders Molloy dropped in a right handed layup being fouled in the process with 20.2 seconds remaining.
Sean added the free throw giving Lane a 40-37 lead. There it would end.
“You know the Molloy boys; those kids are tough as nails. Sean gonna be obviously a really good player for us. We knew he would make those plays. The charge was questionable, but how about a junior responding like that? He wanted the ball right back,” Logalbo said of Molloy.
Sean’s older brother Michael Molloy was Lane’s starting point guard several years ago. Brother Neil Molloy played football at Lane from 2011 to 2015, later playing college football at Illinois Wesleyan.
Sean Molloy had 14 points. Lane’s senior center Aaron McQueen finished with 10 points. Justin Brown had seven.
Jones’ Rosich also with 14 points. Jones’ Devin Boston had 11 points.
One can view the entire game, include Lane Tech sophomore Alex Burstein’s play-by-play, on Lane Tech Athletic’s You Tube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxdhVaJI8sQ&t=53s
