Knights defeat Jay

OSSIAN - Such offensive struggles are not entirely unfamiliar to the Patriots. This time, however, they were not able to overcome the futility.

Jay County managed just seven first-half points Jan. 15 at Connersville before rallying to earn an overtime win. The team was limited to single digits in the opening half again Tuesday, but this time walked away with a 43-32 loss to the host Norwell Knights.

The Patriots (9-7) improved in the second half, holding Norwell scoreless for the first seven minutes. They finally found some offense with 18 fourth-quarter points, but never closed their 17-points halftime deficit to single digits.

"You're not going to stay in any game if you're 3-of-16," said JCHS coach Craig Teagle, whose team scored just eight first-half points. "But realistically, defensively, we didn't play that bad. ... We did a pretty good job, but they did hit some threes.

"I didn't think our energy level was as good as it needed to be in the first half. I thought we were a little tentative. But in the last 16 minutes we picked it up. We played with some passion, some enthusiasm. And we attacked the basket a little more.

"Am I happy with the first 16 minutes, absolutely not. The second 16 minutes, I was much happier with, but you can't dig a hole like that ..."

The Knights (14-5) scored the game's first five points and built a 13-4 first-quarter lead on the power of three 3-pointers. Another triple came as Norwell scored the first 10 points of the second quarter on the way to the 25-8 halftime lead.

Jay County shot just 19 percent in the opening half.

"I thought our defense in the first half was tremendous," said Norwell coach Randy Hawkins of his team's fourth straight win. "They had a hard time getting to the paint. They were doing a lot of east-west movement, not north-south to their bucket."

Brandon Gerber set the tone underneath for the Knights, who won the rebounding battle 32-22, as he grabbed seven first-half boards on the way to a game-high 11.

He blocked three shots and shared the game-high scoring total of nine points with teammate Jordan Shady (two 3-pointers).

Klay Fiechter had eight points and three assists, and Kyle Johnloz (two 3-pointers) also scored eight points.

"They were long. They were athletic. They were quick. They were stronger than us," said Teagle. "It's a senior dominated team, and I think that showed."

Jay County's defense came to life in the third quarter, holding the Knights without a point for the first 6:53. But during the same span the Patriots managed just four points of their own, missing four free throws along the way.

A second-chance 3-pointer from Gerber off a leaping rebound and assist from Jeff Shatto (six points, six rebounds) at the third-quarter buzzer kept Norwell's lead at 16 heading into the final quarter. Jay County got within 10 at 39-29 on the Brad Horn 3-pointer with 1:43 to play, but it was unable to pull any closer.

Hawkins said he wasn't thrilled with the way his team handled the Patriots' defense in the second half, but was happy to come away with the win.

"They started pressuring us a little bit more," he said. "We didn't respond as well as I'd hoped. They turned us over more than I'd like.

"It was rough for us in the second half. We weren't hitting shots that we were hitting in the first half. It was a little frustrating ..."

After missing their first nine shots of the second half, the Knights hit 6 of their last eight to put the game away.

Senior Brad Horn hit a couple of 3-pointers and led Jay County with eight points. Eric Homan (nine rebounds) scored all but two of Jay County's first-half points, but went scoreless in the second half as he finished 2-of-12 from the field. Brock McFarland added six points and three assists.

Junior varsity

The Patriots managed just 11 points over the final three quarters in a 43-21 loss to Norwell.

Drew Houck scored eight points to lead Jay County (11-5), which trailed just 11-9 at the close of the first quarter. Cade Price added five points, and Tyler Back had four.

Josh Vanmeter had 14 points to lead the Knights. Josh Dickey followed with eight points.[[In-content Ad]]