July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
OT, OT, W (01/12/08)
JCHS boys basketball
By By RAY COONEY-
CONNERSVILLE - There were plenty of eye-popping numbers. But perhaps the most exciting for the Patriots was not so large - two.
Not as in double overtime, but as in two wins, back-to-back, for the first time this season.
Jay County High School's boys basketball team scored more points in the second four-minute overtime than it did in the first half for a 75-66 victory over the Connersville Spartans.
"That was a great high school basketball game," said JCHS coach Craig Teagle of the contest, which included 58 fouls and 79 free-throw attempts in 40 minutes. "I'm so proud of the kids.
"They battled adversity when they got into foul trouble. Some things just didn't go our way ... and we kept saying, 'Look, we're not playing very well, but we're right there. We're going to start playing better.' And in the fourth quarter especially, we played well."
After Connersville (4-7, 0-1 Olympic Athletic Conference) hit a buzzer-beater to force overtime and the Patriots (5-4, 1-1 OAC) missed a game-winner opportunity at the close of the first extra session, Jay County took the game over at the foul line.
Just 14 seconds into the second overtime, Heath Rigby buried a couple of free throws and the Patriots never trailed again. Kyle Simmons split a pair from the line at the 3:03 mark before JCHS made its next eight in a row, including four from Simmons, to build a 68-61 advantage.
In all, Jay County hit 14-of-16 free throws (88 percent) in the second overtime and 29-of-37 (78 percent) for the game. Only one Patriot missed more than one foul shot as Simmons went 7-of-8, Billy Wellman and Rigby each hit 5-of-6 and Adam Garringer buried 4-of-5.
"It was a typical Jay County Connersville game," said Connersville coach Rodney Klein, whose team topped the Patriots in overtime a year ago and lost to them in overtime in 2003. "The bottom line is it came down to the free-throw line. You've got to give their kids some credit. They made big free throws when they had to and we missed some big free throws when we needed to hit them."
The Spartans shot 27-of-42 from the line, with three players missing three or more free throws.
"We missed a lot of free throws early that really cost us in the first half when we maybe could have put the lead up to 12 or 15. ... They played with a lot of guts, and our kids did too."
Connersville got Jay County into trouble early, sending a host of Patriots to the bench with two fouls and reaching the double bonus before the mid-point of the second quarter. However, JCHS managed to stay within seven at the half and finally broke free with a 23-point fourth quarter.
The Patriots grabbed the lead with a 6-0 run spanning just 36 seconds in the fourth quarter, and remained ahead 50-48 in the waning moments. On the final play of regulation Wellman stripped Eric Winkler of the ball only to have it land in the hands of Tucker Brown, who laid it in the net to tie the game with two seconds left and force overtime.
The Spartans scored the first three points of the first overtime, but Wellman quickly evened the score with a 3-pointer from the left wing.
"We got down in the overtime, and that's when Billy hit the big three," said Teagle of his leading scorer with 21 points. "And that's when our spirits lifted again. ... I've been on these guys about mental toughness. Well, they showed us some mental toughness tonight."
JCHS pulled ahead 55-53, Jordan Crowe hit two free throws for Connersville to tie the score again and the Patriots held the ball for the final minute-and-a-half in an effort to end the game. But, Luke Goetz's pull-up jumper at the buzzer came up short off the front of the rim.
After getting the opening tip of the second overtime, Jay County used its dead-eye foul shooting to take the victory.
Every member of the Patriot roster contributed big plays, not the least of which was Garringer. He went scoreless in the first half before providing an offensive spark off the bench in the second half and the two overtimes to finish second to Wellman with 14 points. He also grabbed a team-best five rebounds, and had two assists.
Simmons added nine points, and Heath Rigby finished with three assists. Eric Homan was also key, recording a pair of three-point plays in limited minutes.
"He played like we know he's capable," said Teagle of Garringer. "When he plays under control and with offensive discipline, he's a really good basketball player."
"It was just a great effort all around. We wanted 32 minutes of championship intensity and effort," he said, noting his team is still striving for a possible share of the conference title.
" ... we just kept picking up momentum, and I thought at they end we showed that kind of intensity and that kind of effort.
"I'm proud of the team, and this is a big win," he added, looking toward tonight's game at home against Northeastern. "But, we've had a big win before. We need to carry this thing over and play well (tonight) to get any benefits from this."
Four Spartans scored in double figures, with Zack Hufferd leading the way with 16 points before he fouled out with 3:30 left in the second overtime. Eric Winkler, who fouled out two minutes later, had 13 points, Fischesser scored 12 and Jordan Crowe totaled 11.
Winkler grabbed a game-best six rebounds, and had two blocked shots.
Junior varsity
Jay County was called for a questionable foul with two seconds remaining as it fell 35-34 to the Spartans.
The Patriots were up 34-33 after Jacob Westlake drove to the hoop and laid the ball off the glass with just three seconds remaining. But following a time-out, Connersville tossed a long inbound pass and Nathan Brown was called for a holding foul. The whistle sent Jeremy Combs to the line, where he hit the game-tying and game-winning free throws.
Eric Homan had seven points to lead the Jay County, who let an 11-point halftime lead slip away as it was outscored 17-4 in the third quarter.
Westlake added six points, and Brown scored five.
Chase McCombs finished with eight points for the Spartans, and Tyler Risch chipped in seven.
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Not as in double overtime, but as in two wins, back-to-back, for the first time this season.
Jay County High School's boys basketball team scored more points in the second four-minute overtime than it did in the first half for a 75-66 victory over the Connersville Spartans.
"That was a great high school basketball game," said JCHS coach Craig Teagle of the contest, which included 58 fouls and 79 free-throw attempts in 40 minutes. "I'm so proud of the kids.
"They battled adversity when they got into foul trouble. Some things just didn't go our way ... and we kept saying, 'Look, we're not playing very well, but we're right there. We're going to start playing better.' And in the fourth quarter especially, we played well."
After Connersville (4-7, 0-1 Olympic Athletic Conference) hit a buzzer-beater to force overtime and the Patriots (5-4, 1-1 OAC) missed a game-winner opportunity at the close of the first extra session, Jay County took the game over at the foul line.
Just 14 seconds into the second overtime, Heath Rigby buried a couple of free throws and the Patriots never trailed again. Kyle Simmons split a pair from the line at the 3:03 mark before JCHS made its next eight in a row, including four from Simmons, to build a 68-61 advantage.
In all, Jay County hit 14-of-16 free throws (88 percent) in the second overtime and 29-of-37 (78 percent) for the game. Only one Patriot missed more than one foul shot as Simmons went 7-of-8, Billy Wellman and Rigby each hit 5-of-6 and Adam Garringer buried 4-of-5.
"It was a typical Jay County Connersville game," said Connersville coach Rodney Klein, whose team topped the Patriots in overtime a year ago and lost to them in overtime in 2003. "The bottom line is it came down to the free-throw line. You've got to give their kids some credit. They made big free throws when they had to and we missed some big free throws when we needed to hit them."
The Spartans shot 27-of-42 from the line, with three players missing three or more free throws.
"We missed a lot of free throws early that really cost us in the first half when we maybe could have put the lead up to 12 or 15. ... They played with a lot of guts, and our kids did too."
Connersville got Jay County into trouble early, sending a host of Patriots to the bench with two fouls and reaching the double bonus before the mid-point of the second quarter. However, JCHS managed to stay within seven at the half and finally broke free with a 23-point fourth quarter.
The Patriots grabbed the lead with a 6-0 run spanning just 36 seconds in the fourth quarter, and remained ahead 50-48 in the waning moments. On the final play of regulation Wellman stripped Eric Winkler of the ball only to have it land in the hands of Tucker Brown, who laid it in the net to tie the game with two seconds left and force overtime.
The Spartans scored the first three points of the first overtime, but Wellman quickly evened the score with a 3-pointer from the left wing.
"We got down in the overtime, and that's when Billy hit the big three," said Teagle of his leading scorer with 21 points. "And that's when our spirits lifted again. ... I've been on these guys about mental toughness. Well, they showed us some mental toughness tonight."
JCHS pulled ahead 55-53, Jordan Crowe hit two free throws for Connersville to tie the score again and the Patriots held the ball for the final minute-and-a-half in an effort to end the game. But, Luke Goetz's pull-up jumper at the buzzer came up short off the front of the rim.
After getting the opening tip of the second overtime, Jay County used its dead-eye foul shooting to take the victory.
Every member of the Patriot roster contributed big plays, not the least of which was Garringer. He went scoreless in the first half before providing an offensive spark off the bench in the second half and the two overtimes to finish second to Wellman with 14 points. He also grabbed a team-best five rebounds, and had two assists.
Simmons added nine points, and Heath Rigby finished with three assists. Eric Homan was also key, recording a pair of three-point plays in limited minutes.
"He played like we know he's capable," said Teagle of Garringer. "When he plays under control and with offensive discipline, he's a really good basketball player."
"It was just a great effort all around. We wanted 32 minutes of championship intensity and effort," he said, noting his team is still striving for a possible share of the conference title.
" ... we just kept picking up momentum, and I thought at they end we showed that kind of intensity and that kind of effort.
"I'm proud of the team, and this is a big win," he added, looking toward tonight's game at home against Northeastern. "But, we've had a big win before. We need to carry this thing over and play well (tonight) to get any benefits from this."
Four Spartans scored in double figures, with Zack Hufferd leading the way with 16 points before he fouled out with 3:30 left in the second overtime. Eric Winkler, who fouled out two minutes later, had 13 points, Fischesser scored 12 and Jordan Crowe totaled 11.
Winkler grabbed a game-best six rebounds, and had two blocked shots.
Junior varsity
Jay County was called for a questionable foul with two seconds remaining as it fell 35-34 to the Spartans.
The Patriots were up 34-33 after Jacob Westlake drove to the hoop and laid the ball off the glass with just three seconds remaining. But following a time-out, Connersville tossed a long inbound pass and Nathan Brown was called for a holding foul. The whistle sent Jeremy Combs to the line, where he hit the game-tying and game-winning free throws.
Eric Homan had seven points to lead the Jay County, who let an 11-point halftime lead slip away as it was outscored 17-4 in the third quarter.
Westlake added six points, and Brown scored five.
Chase McCombs finished with eight points for the Spartans, and Tyler Risch chipped in seven.
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