Missed opportunities

RICHMOND — With the Patriots trailing by three, Gradin Swoveland missed a mid-range pull-up shot.

In the scramble for the rebound, Jayden Comer grabbed the ball, stepped back and launched a 3-point attempt.

The shot was all air.

Richmond got possession after a loose-ball foul, burned time off the clock and got an open lay-up from Eli Hubbard to effectively end the visitors’ hopes for a victory.

Jay County High School’s boys basketball team had a chance late Saturday in a game that saw seven ties and four lead changes, but it was unable to make key plays down the stretch in a 43-36 loss to the Richmond Red Devils.

"Well, we didn’t expect to take an off-balance fadeaway shot from the corner in that position,” said Jay County coach Jerry Bomholt. “We also missed a handful of free throws and two putbacks there at the end too. We needed to try and make this game a win or a loss on the last possession; that's what we needed to do.

“Every time you come down here, you are in for a tough task, and we did some good things tonight; we just quite didn't get the job done.” 

Jay County (1-1), which was tied with the Red Devils (1-0) at halftime, started the fourth quarter down by seven and then saw its deficit jump to double digits on a Thomas Stargel 3-pointer. But it slowly clawed its way back into the game. Swoveland later intercepted a pass, using his length to get in the passing lane, then dunked the ball on the other end, sparking a 6-0 run until Comer's missed 3-pointer.

The Patriots had an opportunity to cut their deficit even further, as Comer stripped Dae Lundy but missed on the layup at the other end. Swoveland grabbed two offensive rebounds but missed both put-back opportunities.

“I told the kids in the locker room, if every player made one more play they didn’t make, we would have won that game,” said Bomholt. “You’ve got to be able to do the little things to beat a team like that, and at the end there, we didn't do that.”

    Jayden Comer of Jay County surveys the floor in front of Richmond’s Treston Bennett. Comer hit three 3-pointers in a hard-fought 43-36 loss to the Red Devils on Saturday. (The Commercial Review/Will Cash)

Richmond won its season opening game with strong defense. The Red Devils forced 14 turnovers in the game and held the Patriots to an average of just nine points a quarter. 

“Overall it was a battle,” said Richmond coach Billy Wright. “Credit to them; they are well-coached and never really beat themselves. We graduated 10 seniors, and we knew our press defense wouldn't be where we wanted it to be this early in the year. So we switched out of that and went man for the rest of the game. But coming in, we knew it was going to be a battle, and that's a credit to them and the coach staff.”

The Patriots played outstanding defense as well, with its 3-2 zone causing Richmond problems throughout the night. Jay County forced 11 turnovers and held the Red Devils to just nine points in the fourth quarter.

"That 3-2 is their identity," said Wright. "You might not notice it from the bleachers, but they're big and they're long, and those passing lanes that look like they're open weren't. Our guards struggled a bit trying to pass through it and did a much better job in the fourth quarter just punching through it. But they did an excellent job executing their defense against us."

It was the missed opportunities in the fourth quarter that haunted the Patriots as they came up just short. 

In the grind-it-out game, Richmond got a game-high 15 points, including two 3-pointers, from Lundy and an eight-point, eight-rebound game from Hubbard. 

Jay County struggled offensively all night but stayed in the game thanks to Swoveland, who posted 14 points, nine rebounds and three blocks, and Comer, who added 10 points, including three made 3-pointers.