Larkin comes back to beat Rockford Lutheran

ROCKFORD - To say that Larkin's boys basketball team got off to a slow start against Rockford Lutheran would be an understatement.

The Royals trailed 16-7 in the first quarter. But they found a spark, quickly erasing the deficit and coasting to a 68-53 victory in nonconference action Saturday night in Rockford.

Much of the spark came from Kashmir Ivy. When he entered the game late in the first period, the Royals started a 33-8 run that continued until halftime.

Ivy finished with 14 points. Anthony Lynch also had 14 for Larkin (8-8). Pierre Black added 12 points. Jalen Shaw had 11 points and 6 rebounds. Kindrel Morris contributed 7 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists.

Ivy immediately ignited the Royals after checking in. He started the run with a 3-pointer. His rebound led to a 3-pointer by Gunnar Boley, and his steal led to a layup by Morris that gave the Royals the lead early in the second quarter.

Steals by Lynch on back-to-back possessions led to his 2 easy baskets, including a dunk, that made it 24-19 and the Royals were off to the races.

"Kashmir really responded," said Larkin coach Deryn Carter. "He really gave us a spark. But it was other guys too, playing hard."

Jake Greeny almost single-handedly carried the Crusaders to the early lead. He hit four 3-pointers in the first quarter, accounting for 12 of their 19 points in the period. But he had just 5 points the rest of the way, none in the second half.

"We made a little bit of an adjustment after the first quarter to how we were going to defend a couple of their guys," Carter said. "I think we really responded to the adjustments."

Greeny still finished with a game-high 15 points. Sam Stewart added 11 points and Josh Streeter 10 for Lutheran.

Larkin built the lead to as many as 24 points in the second half. That allowed Carter to empty his bench in the late going. Thirteen Royals saw action and 9 of them scored for the Royals, who shot 50 percent for the game (25-for-50). However, Larkin struggled from the free-throw line, hitting just 9 of 20 freebies. Shaw helped that percentage by going a perfect 5-for-5.