March 1, 2017 at 3:22 a.m.
Rally comes up short in sectional opener
Jay County falls to Muncie Central, 40-36.
Rally comes up short in sectional opener
Copyright 2017, The Commercial Review
All Rights Reserved.
FORT WAYNE — It didn’t matter that the team’s highest scorer was on the bench in foul trouble.
The Patriots trimmed a 10-point deficit nearly midway through the third quarter to two with one minute remaining in the game.
A little bit more time on the clock and they might have swept the Bearcats.
The Jay County High School boys basketball team ran out of time Tuesday, falling to the Muncie Central Bearcats 40-36 in the Class 4A Sectional 6 opener at Wayne.
“It was a tale of two halves,” said JCHS coach Chris Krieg, whose team ends the season 13-10. “I felt in the first half they played harder on both ends of the floor than we did.
“I felt we played harder on both ends of the floor in the second half. Unfortunately we were down three, four more points than we needed to be.”
Muncie Central (9-14) advances to the sectional semifinal against former JCHS coach Craig Teagle and his Huntington North Vikings (17-7) at 6 p.m. Friday.
“Ugly win, but we’ll take it,” Muncie Central coach Jeff Holloway said. “Any win is a good win.”
Jay County senior Jay Houck picked up his fourth foul on a player control violation with 1.1 seconds remaining in the second quarter, so he was forced to sit the entire third period. Krieg, who put Houck on the floor as a scoring option in the waning seconds of the opening half, shouldered the blame for his fourth foul, which he got in the right corner in an attempt to get off a 3-pointer before the buzzer.
Christian Wells and Tyrek Vicks combined to score five consecutive points in giving Muncie Central a 26-16 advantage 3 minutes, 21 seconds into the second half. With Houck on the bench, the Patriots cut into the deficit, going on a 9-2 run, including six straight points, to get within three heading to the fourth quarter.
Wyatt Geesaman split a pair of free throws and, after another Wells bucket, Geesaman scored on an assist from Ryan Schlechty. Jason Schlosser followed with a left baseline drive and made the subsequent free throw after drawing a foul. Schlosser blocked Kolby Mallory at the other end, and Geesaman converted an old-fashioned three-point play to make it 28-25.
“I thought Wyatt Geesaman came in and did a whale of a job attacking the basket, rebounding, defending,” said Krieg, whose team lost five of its last six games. “Wyatt got those six points that Jay probably would have had.
“Having Jay helps us, but it didn’t hurt us like I thought it was going to.”
Holloway was relieved Houck was in foul trouble, but disappointed the Patriots were able to cut into the deficit.
“When we got it to 10 we made some mistakes that left guys open, maybe fouled some guys, backdoor layups,” he said. “I know they can shoot it. It makes you kind of nervous the way that they play and the personnel that they have. …
“Jay is a good player. He is not who he is in the record books at Jay County for no reason. I know Jay is a good player.”
Houck was 3-for-5 from the field and finished with eight points. The senior ended his career third on the all-time scoring list with 1,128 points, behind only Brock McFarland (1,177) and Dan Ferrell (1,155).
Schlosser led the Patriots with 11 points, and Cole Stigleman chipped in seven. Geesaman contributed six points, all of which came during the third quarter.
Schlosser split a pair of bonus free throws with 1:07 remaining in the game to make it 32-20 Muncie Central, and a breakdown on the defensive end left Wells wide open for a layup.
Wells scored 10 points, second for the Bearcats to Trent Hatfield’s 13, four of which were at the free-throw line in the final minute to seal the win.
“We did what we had to do,” said Krieg, whose Jay County team earlier this season secured the program’s 16th consecutive winning season. “At that point, and Holloway is good at doing that, he is going to spread you out with their athletes because they are quicker than us. They are stronger than us.
“Obviously, they get the ball in Hatfield’s hands when they need free throws.”
Hatfield and Mallory combined to make all six of the Bearcats’ free throws during the fourth quarter.
It took more than four minutes into the game for either team to score, and Jay County struck first on a Houck 3-pointer at the top of the key on a Schlosser assist. Hatfield answered with a triple and a layup on the next two possessions, and the Bearcats never trailed again. Muncie Central led 8-5 after the opening quarter, and built a 21-12 advantage late in the second period before going into the locker room ahead 21-14 at half.
Despite the fight in the third quarter with Houck on the bench, Jay County lost in the sectional opener in back-to-back seasons.
“They got into their game,” Holloway said. “They are better at it than we are and we were fortunate enough to hold on tonight.”
All Rights Reserved.
FORT WAYNE — It didn’t matter that the team’s highest scorer was on the bench in foul trouble.
The Patriots trimmed a 10-point deficit nearly midway through the third quarter to two with one minute remaining in the game.
A little bit more time on the clock and they might have swept the Bearcats.
The Jay County High School boys basketball team ran out of time Tuesday, falling to the Muncie Central Bearcats 40-36 in the Class 4A Sectional 6 opener at Wayne.
“It was a tale of two halves,” said JCHS coach Chris Krieg, whose team ends the season 13-10. “I felt in the first half they played harder on both ends of the floor than we did.
“I felt we played harder on both ends of the floor in the second half. Unfortunately we were down three, four more points than we needed to be.”
Muncie Central (9-14) advances to the sectional semifinal against former JCHS coach Craig Teagle and his Huntington North Vikings (17-7) at 6 p.m. Friday.
“Ugly win, but we’ll take it,” Muncie Central coach Jeff Holloway said. “Any win is a good win.”
Jay County senior Jay Houck picked up his fourth foul on a player control violation with 1.1 seconds remaining in the second quarter, so he was forced to sit the entire third period. Krieg, who put Houck on the floor as a scoring option in the waning seconds of the opening half, shouldered the blame for his fourth foul, which he got in the right corner in an attempt to get off a 3-pointer before the buzzer.
Christian Wells and Tyrek Vicks combined to score five consecutive points in giving Muncie Central a 26-16 advantage 3 minutes, 21 seconds into the second half. With Houck on the bench, the Patriots cut into the deficit, going on a 9-2 run, including six straight points, to get within three heading to the fourth quarter.
Wyatt Geesaman split a pair of free throws and, after another Wells bucket, Geesaman scored on an assist from Ryan Schlechty. Jason Schlosser followed with a left baseline drive and made the subsequent free throw after drawing a foul. Schlosser blocked Kolby Mallory at the other end, and Geesaman converted an old-fashioned three-point play to make it 28-25.
“I thought Wyatt Geesaman came in and did a whale of a job attacking the basket, rebounding, defending,” said Krieg, whose team lost five of its last six games. “Wyatt got those six points that Jay probably would have had.
“Having Jay helps us, but it didn’t hurt us like I thought it was going to.”
Holloway was relieved Houck was in foul trouble, but disappointed the Patriots were able to cut into the deficit.
“When we got it to 10 we made some mistakes that left guys open, maybe fouled some guys, backdoor layups,” he said. “I know they can shoot it. It makes you kind of nervous the way that they play and the personnel that they have. …
“Jay is a good player. He is not who he is in the record books at Jay County for no reason. I know Jay is a good player.”
Houck was 3-for-5 from the field and finished with eight points. The senior ended his career third on the all-time scoring list with 1,128 points, behind only Brock McFarland (1,177) and Dan Ferrell (1,155).
Schlosser led the Patriots with 11 points, and Cole Stigleman chipped in seven. Geesaman contributed six points, all of which came during the third quarter.
Schlosser split a pair of bonus free throws with 1:07 remaining in the game to make it 32-20 Muncie Central, and a breakdown on the defensive end left Wells wide open for a layup.
Wells scored 10 points, second for the Bearcats to Trent Hatfield’s 13, four of which were at the free-throw line in the final minute to seal the win.
“We did what we had to do,” said Krieg, whose Jay County team earlier this season secured the program’s 16th consecutive winning season. “At that point, and Holloway is good at doing that, he is going to spread you out with their athletes because they are quicker than us. They are stronger than us.
“Obviously, they get the ball in Hatfield’s hands when they need free throws.”
Hatfield and Mallory combined to make all six of the Bearcats’ free throws during the fourth quarter.
It took more than four minutes into the game for either team to score, and Jay County struck first on a Houck 3-pointer at the top of the key on a Schlosser assist. Hatfield answered with a triple and a layup on the next two possessions, and the Bearcats never trailed again. Muncie Central led 8-5 after the opening quarter, and built a 21-12 advantage late in the second period before going into the locker room ahead 21-14 at half.
Despite the fight in the third quarter with Houck on the bench, Jay County lost in the sectional opener in back-to-back seasons.
“They got into their game,” Holloway said. “They are better at it than we are and we were fortunate enough to hold on tonight.”
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