It`s tough to coach high school basketball in the city, and Nelison
”Nick” Anderson made Bob Hambric`s job that much harder Wednesday afternoon.
So why the sly smile on the Simeon coach`s face after his Wolverines demolished Corliss 71-55?
Anderson`s play, obviously. The much-heralded 6-foot-5-inch junior, who was forced by Public League rules to sit out the first semester after transferring from Prosser, scored a team-high 17 points and added 6 rebounds in little more than 17 minutes.
It was impressive to some, but Anderson has been doing things like that for two years. He averaged more than 25 points a game at Prosser as a sophomore.
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De Paul assistant Jim Platt and Illinois aide Jimmy Collins showed up in the Simeon gym to watch Anderson`s unveiling. The fans chanted ”We want Nick!” and they got their wish in the first minute of the second quarter. Anderson didn`t let them down.
But now Hambric has a problem: How to get Anderson more playing time. You`d think Wednesday`s effort would earn him a start Friday against Vocational, but Hambric says no. ”Someone is going to have to play himself out of a starting role,” he said.
That might happen quickly, or as soon as Anderson can find his own groove. ”I don`t think he played relaxed,” said Hambric. ”There has been a lot of undue pressure on him, a lot of outside pressure, and I think today he was playing not to make mistakes.”
But a player of Anderson`s caliber gives Simeon (18-1 overall, 7-0 in Red-South) a better bench than when it won the state Class AA title last March.
With Anderson playing all but 19 seconds of the second quarter and the final 10:50 of the game, Hambric was able to mix and match virtually two full teams against Corliss. Guard Allen Gordon finished with 14 points, forward David Knight added 12 points and 6-4 sophomore Mark Bradley 11.
With Anderson in the picture, Knight could move back to guard, a position at which he`s at home. That would give Gordon and sophomore point guard Deon Butler a chance to rest.
”One player like Anderson can make other people look good,” says Hambric. ”But more than that, it forces other teams to be aware of him. Nobody can guard their man honestly now. Teams will have to adjust to his presence.”