CROWN POINT — Hyron Edwards poured in 46 and 44 points in his last two games against West Side and South Bend Adams.
That was without Damian Jefferson, who was sick.
On Saturday, with Jefferson in the lineup, Edwards dialed it back to a normal level.
Both Edwards and Jefferson scored 19 in a 68-58 victory for No.1 East Chicago Central over Crown Point. It was back to the usual rhythm of how the two play together.
It was still a big night for Edwards. He scored his 1,500th point, finishing the game with 1,514.
East Chicago coach Abe Brown thought that honor would come a couple games down the road. He had to move the timetable up after Edwards’ big week.
There were several competing narratives for this game.
Crown Point (12-7) beat Portage 82-77 in double overtime Friday, and the Cardinals hadn’t played in a week. The Bulldogs weren’t nearly as fresh as EC.
EC, which can slash and bang with just about any team around, took 17 three-point shots in the first half.
Several times, the Cardinal coaches could be heard telling Jefferson and Edwards not to settle for shots.
In the second half, it was a completely different story. EC (13-3) only took three 3-pointers.
Edwards and Jefferson got aggressive about driving to the basket. It paid off. EC shot 14-for-20 from the free-throw line after intermission after shooting just two free throws in the first half.
“It was a good win,” Brown said. “This is a good environment. We were sluggish at the start. I thought we made some good adjustments at half-time. Damian and Hyron were a little anxious early. They just took too many outside shots.”
The Bulldogs had one window to make the game into more than just a solid effort.
Trailing 26-22 with just under three minutes left in the second quarter, Crown Point reeled off six straight points, taking the lead on a layup by Sasha Stefanovic with 1:27 left.
East Chicago scored seven of the next nine points to take a three-point halftime lead.
The Cardinals opened with the first seven points of the second half, forcing Crown Point coach Clint Swan to call timeout.
It was a pivotal moment that went backward for the Bulldogs.
“The end of second quarter and start of the third quarter, I didn’t like we responded to that run,” Swan said. “We got back into it but that hump was too big for us to get over.”
When big man Nick Jeffirs fouled out with 4:40 left, Crown Point had to start firing away from the outside. The Bulldogs took 24 three-point shots.
For Edwards, a senior, who also finished with seven assists, there is an urgency about playing well.
“This is my last go around,” he said. “I gotta make it happen.”
![Hammond’s Phil Taillon will get his chance to run the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority after he was chosen as a top contender for the post during the agency’s 2nd national search in as many years. The board Wednesday approved allowing the search team to enter into contract negotiations after he was selected for the job. Officials expect to finalize the deal at the regular May meeting. Taillon was one of three finalists in the hiring process and was ultimately tapped to replace former President and CEO David Uran, who resigned in December. Taillon and Uran were the two […]](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/PTB-L-SSCVA-TALLION-0511-01-e1715377218204.jpg?w=295 "Hammond’s Phil Taillon will get his chance to run the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority after he was chosen as a top contender for the post during the agency’s 2nd national search in as many years. The board Wednesday approved allowing the search team to enter into contract negotiations after he was selected for the job. Officials expect to finalize the deal at the regular May meeting. Taillon was one of three finalists in the hiring process and was ultimately tapped to replace former President and CEO David Uran, who resigned in December. Taillon and Uran were the two […]")
