January 14, 2017 at 6:44 a.m.
Starfires stumble after solid start
Heritage scores comeback again to top S. Adams in semifinal
Starfires stumble after solid start
Don’t worry, Starfires, Jay County knows how you feel.
On Tuesday night, JCHS jumped out to a 15-6 lead only to have a pair of 9-0 runs erase their lead in an opening-round loss in the conference tournament.
On Friday, the Starfires got off to a blistering start and were up 16-5 after the opening quarter. But by the 4:39 mark of the third that advantage was gone, and it never came back.
The South Adams High School boys basketball team became the second victim of a Heritage Patriots comeback this week as they fell 49-42 in the semifinal round of the Allen County Athletic Conference Tournament at Jay County.
Starfire coach Andy Brown felt the game got away from his team in part because senior leader Jared Grabau spent a portion of the second quarter on the bench because of foul trouble.
“When you sit that long, I think it’s hard to get into a flow,” he said. “Then when he came back I felt like he was trying to force some things. They did a good job on Marcus (Teeter) then when Jared was off the floor. That really hurts us when we have one of those guys off the floor for too long.”
South Adams won the regular-season meeting between the two squads by two points and looked as if they were headed for a bigger win in the ACAC tournament.
On Tuesday night, JCHS jumped out to a 15-6 lead only to have a pair of 9-0 runs erase their lead in an opening-round loss in the conference tournament.
On Friday, the Starfires got off to a blistering start and were up 16-5 after the opening quarter. But by the 4:39 mark of the third that advantage was gone, and it never came back.
The South Adams High School boys basketball team became the second victim of a Heritage Patriots comeback this week as they fell 49-42 in the semifinal round of the Allen County Athletic Conference Tournament at Jay County.
Starfire coach Andy Brown felt the game got away from his team in part because senior leader Jared Grabau spent a portion of the second quarter on the bench because of foul trouble.
“When you sit that long, I think it’s hard to get into a flow,” he said. “Then when he came back I felt like he was trying to force some things. They did a good job on Marcus (Teeter) then when Jared was off the floor. That really hurts us when we have one of those guys off the floor for too long.”
South Adams won the regular-season meeting between the two squads by two points and looked as if they were headed for a bigger win in the ACAC tournament.
But Heritage has experience in the comeback department and never faltered after taking the lead early in the third quarter.
“It’s happened more than just the other night,” said Heritage coach Matt Widenhoefer. “We know it’s a long game. … When we’re down, we try not to get overly down on ourselves; just try to figure out what we’ve got to do to relax and get back in the game.”
His team advances to tonight’s tournament championship against Woodlan (7-5), which topped Southern Wells 64-43 in the semifinal round, at 6 p.m. at South Adams.
The Patriots (5-4) started chipping away at their double-digit deficit in the second quarter. They scored the first six points, limited SAHS to a single field goal and were within four at the intermission.
Heritage pulled even when Rylie Schane buried a 3-pointer with 5:37 on the clock in the first half and then took their first lead lead when he hit another triple from the right wing a minute later.
It gradually extended its own advantage to double figures and then scored 15 of its 23 fourth-quarter points from the foul line.
“I was real proud of our guys. We handled the pressure pretty well at the end. We got to the free-throw line,” said Widenhoefer. “When you’re up against a team that can pressure, taking care of the ball is number one, getting to the line is number two, and I thought we did a good job of that.”
Schane’s 17 points, including three 3-pointers, were a team-high for the Patriots. Walter Knapke and Blake Kizer added 11 points apiece, and Lamar Hudson gave his team a big lift in the second half to finish with nine points and nine rebounds. All of his six offensive boards came after the break as he and Abram Beard (10 rebounds) led Heritage to a 20-8 advantage on the glass in the final 16 minutes.
South Adams, which shot just 4-of-21 in the second and third quarters after hitting for 7-of-11 in the first, got a game-high 18 points from Teeter. The last of those came on a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Kody Fike, who had six of his team’s first eight points, finished with 12. He also grabbed a team-best six rebounds.
“It’s happened more than just the other night,” said Heritage coach Matt Widenhoefer. “We know it’s a long game. … When we’re down, we try not to get overly down on ourselves; just try to figure out what we’ve got to do to relax and get back in the game.”
His team advances to tonight’s tournament championship against Woodlan (7-5), which topped Southern Wells 64-43 in the semifinal round, at 6 p.m. at South Adams.
The Patriots (5-4) started chipping away at their double-digit deficit in the second quarter. They scored the first six points, limited SAHS to a single field goal and were within four at the intermission.
Heritage pulled even when Rylie Schane buried a 3-pointer with 5:37 on the clock in the first half and then took their first lead lead when he hit another triple from the right wing a minute later.
It gradually extended its own advantage to double figures and then scored 15 of its 23 fourth-quarter points from the foul line.
“I was real proud of our guys. We handled the pressure pretty well at the end. We got to the free-throw line,” said Widenhoefer. “When you’re up against a team that can pressure, taking care of the ball is number one, getting to the line is number two, and I thought we did a good job of that.”
Schane’s 17 points, including three 3-pointers, were a team-high for the Patriots. Walter Knapke and Blake Kizer added 11 points apiece, and Lamar Hudson gave his team a big lift in the second half to finish with nine points and nine rebounds. All of his six offensive boards came after the break as he and Abram Beard (10 rebounds) led Heritage to a 20-8 advantage on the glass in the final 16 minutes.
South Adams, which shot just 4-of-21 in the second and third quarters after hitting for 7-of-11 in the first, got a game-high 18 points from Teeter. The last of those came on a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Kody Fike, who had six of his team’s first eight points, finished with 12. He also grabbed a team-best six rebounds.
Top Stories
9/11 NEVER FORGET Mobile Exhibit
Chartwells marketing
September 17, 2024 7:36 a.m.
Events
250 X 250 AD