By John Raffel
In the end, the Rockford Rams weren’t able to put together one more run.
The Rams lost the Class A championship game to Saginaw 54-42 at the Breslin Center on March 24, although the score was tied four times and the lead changed eight times.
“We got here and played together as a team,” said junior guard Chad Carlson. “We just couldn’t get it done.”
Saginaw fired out to a 7-0 lead. But then Rockford took over with an impressive 18-0 run that lasted until the second period. Alex Durkin hit a pair of 3-pointers and Chase Fairchild added a triple to spark the run.
Then it was Saginaw’s turn with a 12-0 run fueled by a couple of baskets from Joe Williams-Powell. The two teams battled until halftime, when Saginaw held a 25-24 lead.
The Trojans opened the third quarter on a 6-0 run. Fairchild had two triples to keep Rockford close. Saginaw was up 37-35 going into the third.
With 2:45 to play, it was a 43-42 Saginaw lead. But then the Trojans went on the final run of the game, 11-0. The Rams couldn’t buy a bucket the rest of the way.
Keyon Addison sparked Saginaw during the last run with a 3-pointer and a free throw. The Rams did not shoot a free throw, while the Trojans were 11 of 17 from the line. Rockford was whistled for 16 fouls compared to nine for Saginaw.
“It’s tough when you don’t get to the free throw line,” said Rockford coach Nick Allen. “It was a game of runs.”
Fairchild had 14 points for Rockford. Rockford committed 15 turnovers compared to five for Saginaw.
“I think for us, we knew we could do it while others didn’t,” said senior center Ivy Johnson. “We believed in ourselves.”
Getting to the finals meant a lot to the program, Johnson indicated. “It’s an expectation now, and hopefully there’s more of this in the years to come,” he said.
For the game, Rockford shot 16 of 39 from the floor for 41 percent.
Rockford had edged past Romulus 62-61 in the semifinals, led by Fairchild with 17 points in 19 minutes of play and Scott Nikodemski with 12 points and four rebounds.
“We hoped and wished,” said Allen.”We’ve played pretty good team defense all year. These guys buy into each other. They like each other. They talk. Tonight we gave up more points than maybe we’ve given up all year. That’s a tribute to them.”
In the Romulus game, Rockford was 18 of 25 at the free throw line but missed some key ones late in the game.
“We’ve had games we’ve shot well and games we haven’t,” Allen said. “They’re good hard-working kids.”
Rockford finished the season at 22-6 under Allen in his first year as coach. The last time Rockford won a state title was in 2003 under coach Steve Majerle.
“Coach Majerle obviously did a Hall of Fame job building Rockford basketball up into a respectable program,” Allen said. “I’ve said several times that to get his recommendation meant a lot. The guys make it easier to hopefully build Rockford basketball into something people will respect.”