No rust on Patriots (01/05/2009)

After three weeks without a game, all Jay County needed to come up with a win was a little more time.

The Patriots (5-0) took an extra four minutes to knock out the Muncie Central Bearcats (4-4), clinching a 53-40 overtime win at home Saturday night to stay undefeated.

Jay County took control in the overtime, holding their opponent to two points on a single field goal - a last second lay-up that the Patriots didn't attempt to defend - while pounding the game away from the free throw line, putting in 13 of their 15 OT points from the stripe.

While all the time off probably affected the Patriots in the first half, the rest paid off in the endgame against the Bearcats, who were playing back-to-back coming off a Friday night loss to Pike.

"I thought (the time off) bothered us a little bit about game speed, cause you can't simulate game speed," said Jay County coach Craig Teagle. "What also helped was the fact they didn't play quite as quick because they had a game last night.

"They were going to be a little tired and I think that showed up. Once we controlled a couple offensive possessions, you can wear a team out by your offense just as well as your defense."

JCHS held the lead for most of the fourth quarter until Central's Jeremiah Davis drilled a three-pointer with 40 seconds remaining to tie the game up at 38 apiece. The Patriots came down the floor looking for a last possession win, but a driving lay-up by point guard Kyle Simmons rolled off the rim and was scooped up, giving the Bearcats one last shot with about 15 seconds on the clock.

Jerel Allen pulled up from the corner for the win, but couldn't get the long range shot to fall and Jay County went on to the OT win.

"They're a really good baseketball team," said Teagle. "They didn't hit shots tonight probably like they usually do, and we played well enough to win."

After jumping out to a 14-7 lead in the first quarter, Jay County hit some turbulence as Central tore back in the second, outscoring the Patriots 15-4 in the second to take a four-point lead going into the half.

After the half the Patriots were more patient on offense, finding some rhythm as well as a go-to-guy in junior Eric Homan, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half as he anchored his team from the post.

"The gameplan going in was to be patient and to be smart," Teagle said. "They understood that we got to quick with our shots and stuff.

"(Homan) was smart - he had a mismatch, he had a guard on him - and even though we're not real big, he is one of our post players. So automatically he posted up two or three times and they got the ball into him. That's smart basketball on Eric Homan's part."

Homan couldn't miss, draining all four of his field goals within the paint to get the Patriots rolling in the third to retake the lead.

"We had a great second quarter. We were attacking on the offensive end and did a much better job defensively," said Bearcat coach Matt Fine. "The third quarter we gave some possessions away, shooting it quick and giving up three or four easy lay-ups ...

"When you throw possessions away in a game like this when possessions are so valuable you're going to get beat at the end. In one-possession games ... we've got to make plays and we didn't make plays at the right times when we needed to. Jay County did a great job of doing what they do, they make you play on both ends of the floor and that's why they win games."

Adam Garringer led all scorers with 16 points, eight from the free-throw line, Homan added 14 and six rebounds, and Billy Wellman chipped in 12 points and six boards.

The Patriots were carried by their good free throw shooting, 21-of-26 (81 percent), as the Bearcats were in foul trouble most of the second half.

Austin Fox posted a double-double for the Bearcats, 10 points and 11 rebounds, and Davis dropped 11 points to lead Central's scorers. The Bearcats were crippled by their poor long-range shooting, draining only 3-of-21 (14 percent) on the evening.

Junior Varsity

After a first period Jay County lead, the Bearcats overcame the deficit in the second and never looked back on the way to a 34-25 win over the Patriots.

A four-point-play in the second for junior Adrian Wells changed the momentum for the Bearcats, who outscored the Patriots 13-6 before the half to carry them to the win.

Point guard Garret Krieg led Jay County with 12 points, Josh Beaty had four points and six rebounds, and Drew Houck had two points and five boards in the losing effort.

For the Bearcats, Wells had 17, including four three-pointers, to lead all scorers. Central had eight players hit a field goal in the game.

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