CENTERBURG – After a three-week layoff because of a quarantine, the Centerburg boys basketball team showed no rust in its return to action.
The Trojans jumped out to a 20-2 lead and rolled to a 65-29 victory over Mount Gilead in Knox Morrow Athletic Conference play on Saturday, Jan. 23.
“We got struck with two quarantines right in a row,” Centerburg senior Carter Jones said. “Being able to come back and play how we played today, I think it speaks a lot about how focused our guys are.”
Jones was one of two players that recorded double-doubles in the win. He had 15 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and three assists to lead the Trojans (9-1, 7-0). It was quite a performance for a player who went through his own struggles over the team’s three-week absence.
“It was tough (being out),” Jones said. “I had COVID myself. So in the quarantine, I couldn’t do too much. I’m just trying to get back into the swing of things. I feel fine; I got cleared, so I’ve been working out on my own prior to practice.”
“That’s a testament to Carter Jones,” Centerburg coach John Marhefka said. “He’s a class young man and doing a great thing trying to lead the guys. He’s trying to learn to be a better leader and do things for his team and leave a little behind for the program and the guys that played before him and the coaches that were here before. That’s a good thing.”
The game was originally supposed to be played the previous night, but Centerburg wasn’t allowed to return to practice until Jan. 21. They got two practices in before resuming game action.
Mckinnon Mead scored the team’s first five points as it opened 10-0. Jack Gregory followed with a pair of 3-pointers and the Trojans led 16-2 at the end of one quarter.
Jones got going offensively in the second quarter with 11 points as Centerburg extended the lead to 20-2 and 29-5 before Mount Gilead could get going.
“These boys have been working very hard since the beginning of the season,” Marhefka said. “They’ve been adaptable, resilient, coachable … it’s been a lot of fun. So I think you’ve gotta give the boys a lot of credit — all throughout the program.”
Alex Johnson also recorded a double-double for the Trojans with 10 points and 12 rebounds along with four steals.
Levi Houck had 12 points, five rebounds and a pair of assists; Mead finished with nine points and five helpers; and Gregory added eight points for Centerburg, which hadn’t played since beating Grandview Heights for the Bobcat Classic championship on Dec. 30, 2020.
Mount Gilead was without one of its leaders in Paul Butterman, who suffered a high-ankle sprain at River Valley on Jan. 16. Butterman encouraged teammates on the sideline while wearing a walking boot.
“I did not expect that,” MG coach Dan Strasser said. “It was totally shocking. I believed in our game plan and I believed we were going to execute it — I truly did. We’ve been known to get off to slow starts, but I thought we had fixed that. We can make all kinds of excuses if we want to. But we all know that’s not going to change anything right now.”
Matthew Bland led MG (5-9, 4-6) with eight points and six rebounds; and Jackson Huffer had six rebounds, two assists and a pair of steals to go with three points.
