COLLINSVILLE – East St. Louis junior guard Jashawn Anderson had a pair of good games in the 35th Prairie Farms Collinsville Holiday Classic tournament this past weekend.
Anderson took over the game in the second half as he scored a game-high 20 points in leading the Flyers past Edwardsville in the fifth-place semifinals Friday evening 57-49, then had 12 points in the fifth-place game as East Side defeated Granite City 77-58.
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Against the Tigers on Friday, Anderson felt that the Flyers playing with positive energy was a big key in their win.
“Our plan was, we didn’t have a plan,” Anderson said in an interview following the Edwardsville game. “We weren’t playing with energy, and we had to figure out the energy, so I helped our team do that.”
The Tigers held a 30-20 lead at halftime, but Anderson helped the Flyers come from behind, taking charge in late in the third quarter to give East Side the lead.
“When we first played, everyone was taking the first loss (to Rockford East in the quarterfinals 69-63 in overtime) into our second game, but that’s why we were playing like without energy, so our coach (Mark Chambers) had to get into our head a little bit at halftime. And it’s what made us pick up energy.”
The comeback win was a very good feeling for Anderson and the Flyers, and even though it was a tournament game, it was just another night in the Southwestern Conference.
“Yeah, it was a good win for us,” Anderson said. “It put us in a good spot. I mean, it boosted our confidence a lot from the loss we took in the second game of the tournament.”
Anderson looked forward to the game against the Warriors but knows that his team doesn’t take any opponent lightly.
“I think it should be a pretty easy win, but we don’t take anyone for granted,” Anderson said. “So we’ve still got to play hard, play smart, and we’ve all got to play together.”
And as the new year will be getting underway soon, Anderson has a very ambitious goal for himself and his team.
“Our hope is making it to Peoria,” Anderson said, referring to the site of the IHSA Class 3A finals in March. “Our goal is getting better every day, so we’re working on that. And keep playing as a team.”
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