Rebels top Jay (02/04/2009)

Poise is becoming the buzzword for the Patriots.

When they play with it, they win. In the second half Tuesday, they did not.

Thanks to 14 second-half turnovers and a technical foul resulting in a five-point play, the Jay County High School boys basketball team lost 53-47 to the visiting Muncie Southside Rebels.

"The lack of poise is disappointing because we're a senior-dominated team," said JCHS coach Craig Teagle, whose seven-man varsity rotation includes six seniors. "We just fell apart. The wheels fell off.

"We had a total breakdown in a lot of categories. You can't win a basketball game if you're playing like that."

The Patriots (9-3, 1-1 Olympic Athletic Conference) played to their game plan in the first half, repeatedly scoring on back-door cuts and drives to the basket by point guard Kyle Simmons. They had an eight-point lead at the half after giving up just four second-quarter points, but the game shifted after the intermission.

Southside continued to struggle from the field, but dominated the offensive glass and scored on second- and third-chance opportunities. And when they put the ball in the basket, they brought the defensive pressure.

The Rebels forced 10 Jay County turnovers in the third quarter, in which they used a 13-2 run to erase a seven-point deficit and take the lead for good.

"We went out and we pretty much played their style of ball," said Southside coach Rick Baumgartner of the first half. "And obviously they're good at what they do, and we weren't going to keep doing that. So we stepped up the tempo, extended the pressure, went to a little different half-court defense, and it definitely paid off."

The other to the Rebels' rally came thanks to a technical foul.

JCHS still held a 30-25 when Trey Dunn was called for a reaching in foul, which would have resulted in a one-and-one. Instead, Lance Franklin was also hit with a technical foul, giving Southside two more free throws and possession of the ball.

Jamal Wolfe hit both technical free throws, and Rondell Wolfe added 1-of-2. Rondell Wolfe followed it up by burying a pull-up jumper on the left baseline to complete a five-point possession and tie the game.

Teagle's reaction was simple: "You can't get a technical foul."

The Patriots managed to pull ahead two more times in the game, including 44-43 midway through the final period, but turnovers and offensive rebounds continued to bite them. Southside finished with a 10-4 run, despite missing four free throws in the final 1:30.

A victory would have locked up at least a share of the Olympic Athletic Conference title for the Patriots. Instead, Southside can earn the OAC championship outright with a win Friday over Connersville.

Rondell Wolfe picked up a technical foul for the Rebels in the first half and was sent to the locker room, but came back strong after the intermission. He scored 16 of his game-high 21 points in the second half, in which the Rebels posted 37 points. JCHS allows an average of just 42 points per game.

He also grabbed a game-high eight rebounds, leading Southside to a 21-14 advantage on the glass in the second half.

"We had a little talk with Rondell at halftime," said Baumgartner. ... I'm proud of him. He responded. ...

"Sometimes (players) wear they're emotions on their sleeves. And they've got to learn to control it."

Jamal Wolfe added 12 points. Jamal Roberson and Skylar Furney each had five boards.

Billy Wellman had 13 points and five rebounds for the Patriots, who lost for the third time in their last four games after opening the season with eight consecutive wins. Adam Garringer had 11 points, Simmons scored 10 and Eric Homan finished with seven rebounds.

Both teams scored 14 points at the foul line, and Jay County shot 50 percent from the field compared to just 30 percent for the Rebels. But thanks to turnovers and offensive rebounds, Southside racked up 33 more field-goal attempts than the Patriots.

Junior varsity

Jay County dominated the third quarter and Brad Horn was on the mark at the foul line in the fourth in a 37-33 victory over the Rebels.

The Patriots led by seven at the close of the first quarter before falling behind 24-21 at the half. But the home team was ready again in the fourth quarter, outscoring Southside 17-4.

Brad Horn hit 7-of-8 free throws in the fourth quarter as he shared the JCHS team high of 13 points with Ben Walter. The Patriots outscored the Rebels 10-1 at the free-throw line.

Josh Beaty also reached double figures with 12 points.

Coty Reynolds tallied 12 points for Southside. Stephon Ruffin added nine points.

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