SPRINGFIELD – Lincoln Land Community College’s men’s basketball team committed 24 turnovers in its 65-42 loss to Rend Lake College. The average college basketball team has 12 turnovers each game.
Lincoln Land freshmen starters Eddie Longmeyer and Andrew Weaver scored the Loggers’ first nine points of the game.
Weaver made an impressive step-back 3-point shot to start the game, while Longmeyer split two defenders to make a juggling layup.
Loggers freshman Edin Mehmodovic had a team-high eight points and seven rebounds. In the first half, he showed strength when he dribbled inside, spun around a defender and made a right-handed layup for the score.
Click here to find a complete box score from the game.
“He’s (Mehmodovic) a guy that can be that physical guy down low, and we need more of that from him,” LLCC head coach Chad Jones said.
LLCC had a 13-5 lead to start the game. The Warriors then went on a 32-11 run in the last 15 minutes of the first half.
“It’s an effort thing,” Jones said. “We were still in that mindset that we are high school players. When you get a big lead like that, teams are going to roll up and quit on you, and it doesn’t happen in college.”
With the big lead, the Loggers made several substitutions.
“The energy fell off, and we dug a big hole,” Jones said.
In the second half, the Loggers were given many opportunities to score, as Rend Lake turned the ball over numerous times. But without a surge inside, LLCC was forced to shoot low percentage shots from behind the arc.
“We’ve been struggling shooting the ball from the 3-point line,” Jones said. “Derrick Smith was 0-5 tonight (shooting). This was his first game back from injury, and it definitely showed that he was rusty. We’ve got to shoot the ball better, there’s no doubt about that.”
LLCC’s record is now 3-3.
“We have to have more effort out there,” Jones said
The Loggers next game will be against Richard Daley College at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 22 in the Cass Gym.
Nathanael Herbert can be reached at [email protected] or 217-786-2311.
