July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Bulldogs bite the Fort (03/11/2009)
FRHS basketball
Bulldogs bite the Fort (03/11/2009)
By By RAY COONEY-
WAPAKONETA, Ohio - Aaron Cross hit a 3-pointer to open the scoring Tuesday night. Mitchell Faine added another during Ada's 11-4 opening run
The Bulldogs didn't hit another long ball until the second half, but the damage was done.
Fort Recovery was forced to step out on Ada's shooters, and the Bulldogs made them pay by repeatedly driving to the paint for the rest of the first half. They pushed ahead by as many as 12, and the Tribe never got closer than seven in the second half as Ada took the district semifinal game 56-40.
"Once they hit those shots, they were able to spread the floor on us early," said FRHS coach Brian Patch, whose team finished the season at 14-8. "That's not how we want to play or like to play ... We're by no means a pressure team ... and that kind of took us out of our game a little bit."
Fort Recovery's only lead of the game came at 4-3, and the Indians went the final six minutes of the opening period without a field goal. Back-to-back hoops by freshman Konnor Baker pushed the Ada lead to 23-11 with about two minutes to go in the first half.
"They came out and picked us up in man, and we thought we could get them off the dribble," said Ada coach Chris Sautter. "Kyle (Baker), Heath (Jackson), Mitchell (Faine) and Konnor (Baker) were able to put the ball on the floor an penetrate. They were able to get some looks for themselves and looks for other people, and that kind of opens up the offensive rebounds. That's what we wanted to do, get that ball in the paint and score around the basket as much as we could."
A Greg Kahlig hoop got the Indians to within seven early in the second half, but Faine responded with his second 3-pointer of the game.
The Tribe had a chance to enter the fourth quarter with momentum after Toby Metzger's 3-pointer with 30 seconds remaining in the third. But an off-the-mark 3-point try at the other end turned into gold for Ada as Alex Weber snatched the air ball and put it in at the buzzer to push his team's lead back to 11.
And after a pair of Kahlig free throws cut the Bulldogs' lead to eight with 4:01 to play, Fort Recovery failed to score another point until the benches had cleared in the final minute.
"Every time we tried to get back in the game or made a play ... every bounce seemed to go their way, every loose ball went their way," said Patch, whose team was outscored 10-3 on second-chance points. "Every time we made a run it seemed like they made a play and we couldn't seem to make one.
"We started to make a run back on them a little bit (at the end of the third quarter). And then we don't get an offensive rebound and they do. I think that kind of sums up our overall night."
Faine led three Ada players in double figures with 14 points. Cross added 12 points, and Konnor Baker had 11 points and three assists.
Kyle Baker totaled five rebounds and three assists, and Brandon Dysert had five boards.
"Our kids stepped up tonight," said Sautter. "Going into this we thought this was going to be a pretty physical basketball game, and I think it was. Our kids responded pretty well to the challenge."
The Bulldogs advance to Friday's district championship game, in which they will have the unenviable task of taking on New Knoxville. The defending state champion Rangers (22-0) defeated Temple Christian 44-35 in Tuesday's other district semifinal game.
New Knoxville is on a run of 49 straight victories, with its last loss coming to Georgetown in the 2007 regional championship.
Fort Recovery, which took New Knoxville to triple overtime this season, struggled to find an offensive flow against Ada. It went nearly 19 minutes without scoring consecutive baskets, missed its first seven 3-point tries on the way to a 2-of-14 (14 percent) night from long distance and hit just 39 percent from the field.
"That's probably the best job that we've been defended all year, especially with Greg," said Patch of the Midwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year, who averages nearly 25 points per game. "Cross did a great job on him, making his shots tough ... He's obviously averaging about half of our points, so when your gun is struggling a little bit, therefore you kind of struggle."
Kahlig, a junior, was limited to just nine field-goal attempts, scoring 12 points. He also had five rebounds and two blocks.
Senior Toby Metzger, a four-year varsity player, led the Indians with 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Classmate Frank Thien added five assists and two blocks.
"I thought Toby Metzger came ready to play tonight and made some great plays for us," said Patch as he praised his senior group, which also includes Brent Faller, Brady Kahlig, Matt Braun and Wes Kahlig. "We're going to miss those guys tremendously, not just on the court, but off the court."
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The Bulldogs didn't hit another long ball until the second half, but the damage was done.
Fort Recovery was forced to step out on Ada's shooters, and the Bulldogs made them pay by repeatedly driving to the paint for the rest of the first half. They pushed ahead by as many as 12, and the Tribe never got closer than seven in the second half as Ada took the district semifinal game 56-40.
"Once they hit those shots, they were able to spread the floor on us early," said FRHS coach Brian Patch, whose team finished the season at 14-8. "That's not how we want to play or like to play ... We're by no means a pressure team ... and that kind of took us out of our game a little bit."
Fort Recovery's only lead of the game came at 4-3, and the Indians went the final six minutes of the opening period without a field goal. Back-to-back hoops by freshman Konnor Baker pushed the Ada lead to 23-11 with about two minutes to go in the first half.
"They came out and picked us up in man, and we thought we could get them off the dribble," said Ada coach Chris Sautter. "Kyle (Baker), Heath (Jackson), Mitchell (Faine) and Konnor (Baker) were able to put the ball on the floor an penetrate. They were able to get some looks for themselves and looks for other people, and that kind of opens up the offensive rebounds. That's what we wanted to do, get that ball in the paint and score around the basket as much as we could."
A Greg Kahlig hoop got the Indians to within seven early in the second half, but Faine responded with his second 3-pointer of the game.
The Tribe had a chance to enter the fourth quarter with momentum after Toby Metzger's 3-pointer with 30 seconds remaining in the third. But an off-the-mark 3-point try at the other end turned into gold for Ada as Alex Weber snatched the air ball and put it in at the buzzer to push his team's lead back to 11.
And after a pair of Kahlig free throws cut the Bulldogs' lead to eight with 4:01 to play, Fort Recovery failed to score another point until the benches had cleared in the final minute.
"Every time we tried to get back in the game or made a play ... every bounce seemed to go their way, every loose ball went their way," said Patch, whose team was outscored 10-3 on second-chance points. "Every time we made a run it seemed like they made a play and we couldn't seem to make one.
"We started to make a run back on them a little bit (at the end of the third quarter). And then we don't get an offensive rebound and they do. I think that kind of sums up our overall night."
Faine led three Ada players in double figures with 14 points. Cross added 12 points, and Konnor Baker had 11 points and three assists.
Kyle Baker totaled five rebounds and three assists, and Brandon Dysert had five boards.
"Our kids stepped up tonight," said Sautter. "Going into this we thought this was going to be a pretty physical basketball game, and I think it was. Our kids responded pretty well to the challenge."
The Bulldogs advance to Friday's district championship game, in which they will have the unenviable task of taking on New Knoxville. The defending state champion Rangers (22-0) defeated Temple Christian 44-35 in Tuesday's other district semifinal game.
New Knoxville is on a run of 49 straight victories, with its last loss coming to Georgetown in the 2007 regional championship.
Fort Recovery, which took New Knoxville to triple overtime this season, struggled to find an offensive flow against Ada. It went nearly 19 minutes without scoring consecutive baskets, missed its first seven 3-point tries on the way to a 2-of-14 (14 percent) night from long distance and hit just 39 percent from the field.
"That's probably the best job that we've been defended all year, especially with Greg," said Patch of the Midwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year, who averages nearly 25 points per game. "Cross did a great job on him, making his shots tough ... He's obviously averaging about half of our points, so when your gun is struggling a little bit, therefore you kind of struggle."
Kahlig, a junior, was limited to just nine field-goal attempts, scoring 12 points. He also had five rebounds and two blocks.
Senior Toby Metzger, a four-year varsity player, led the Indians with 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Classmate Frank Thien added five assists and two blocks.
"I thought Toby Metzger came ready to play tonight and made some great plays for us," said Patch as he praised his senior group, which also includes Brent Faller, Brady Kahlig, Matt Braun and Wes Kahlig. "We're going to miss those guys tremendously, not just on the court, but off the court."
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