Patriots pass test

Kegan Comer will have to wait a while to get the results of his Saturday-morning test.
As for the exam he took later that evening, he passed with flying colors.
Comer, who took the SAT earlier in the day, got to the basket at will over the final 10 minutes of the game, during which he scored 12 of his game-high 18 points. The last of those came on a pair of free throws after he drew a foul with just 4.3 seconds left, lifting Jay County to a 43-41 high school boys basketball victory over the visiting Bluffton Tigers.
“Obviously Kegan is a pretty good player,” said Bluffton coach Kevin Leising of the Patriots’ left-handed point guard. “The two biggest things defensively is we couldn’t guard their out-of-bounds plays … and we couldn’t guard Kegan.
“So many guys … get so used to guarding right-handed players. When you have a left-handed kid it’s just more difficult. And Kegan was really good at just faking a little bit right, and he still went left. … He made it very difficult to guard him.
“The other thing that bothered me is we didn’t make him hit any jump shots. He made free throws and lay-ups.”
Comer had a hand in each of Jay County’s final 10 points — he scored eight and assisted on a score by Tyler Back — as the teams traded baskets after being tied at 31 at the end of the third.
The game was tied five more times in the final period, including at 41 after a Chandler Prible hoop in the final minute.
With the game on the line the Patriots put the ball in Comer’s hands once again. He faked toward the middle of the lane and then drove left, drawing three Bluffton defenders and the foul.
After missing three free throws in the first half, he calmly drained both with 4.3 seconds left to give his team the lead.
“I was just looking to at least get a foul,” said Comer. “We were just trying to hold it for the last-second shot and then try to draw the foul or get the last-second bucket. It worked out pretty good.”
Bluffton (3-1) had a final opportunity, with Ryan McCarthy sending his inbound pass to Keith Cochran. The Tigers’ center found Mike Pearson with a pass just inside the 3-point line on the right side, but Pearson’s off-balance shot rattled off the backboard and the rim as the Patriots held on for the win.
“We tried to throw it to Keith and hit somebody long,” said Leising. “What happens there so often is they just played soft, so when Keith turned around what we wanted to get he couldn’t get. So then he just threw it to Mike. … It would have been kind of a lucky shot for him to bank it in …”
For the second straight game to open the season Jay County had just one player in double figures, with Comer finishing 6-of-7 from the field on the way to his game-high total. After missing all of his first-half free throws, he went 6-for-6 in the second half.
Comer also dished out four assists, and shared the team-high of three rebounds.
“What I liked about it was, when it came crunch time he wanted the ball in his hands,” said JCHS coach Craig Teagle of Comer. “He asked to have the ball in his hands.
“Last weekend it was Brock that stepped up and made some plays. This week it was Kegan …”
Jay County (2-0) trailed most of the way after falling behind when Tanner Coratti of the Tigers scored the first bucket of the second quarter. It was down by as many as eight in the third quarter before pulling even on a Comer drive at the end of the third. And the Patriots didn’t take the lead again until the junior hit a pair of free throws at the 4:32 mark of the fourth.
Scott Schwieterman and McFarland followed Comer with six points apiece, and Back scored four. McFarland also had three rebounds and three assists.
“I felt like we got outplayed so much of the game, but we were able to continue to fight and battle and that’s why they make the game 32 minutes,” said Teagle. “We found a way to win. … Bluffton played well, but at the end we found a way.”
Bluffton got 12 and 11 points respectively from Matthew Sturgeon and Pearson, but fell short on production in the paint. Cochran, who is listed at 7 feet tall, attempted just one field goal and finished with five points.

Junior varsity
Darren Bogenschutz scored 11 points in the second half as Jay County overcame a halftime deficit for a 41-26 victory.
Bogenschutz led all scorers with 13 points for the Patriots, who outscored Bluffton 25-8 after the break. Kyle Selvey and Zane Shreve added nine points apiece.
Jake Garrett finished with 11 points for the Tigers.

Freshman
The Patriots outscored Bluffton in every quarter, including 9-0 in the third, on the way to a 38-15 win.
Justin Dirksen hit  a pair of 3-pointers and led Jay County with 11 points. Jalen Ryder scored nine points, and Nate Brackman added seven.
Javon Morgan scored five points for the Tigers.[[In-content Ad]]