Big fourth quarter by Highland not enough to take down Northmor
Host Northmor withstood a furious Highland scoring frenzy in the fourth with a twine-ruffling output of its own to nail down a 67-63 victory Feb. 8.
The Golden Knights (11-9, 7-6 KMAC) took a 12-8 lead over the visiting Fighting Scots (8-10, 5-5 KMAC) sparked by five points by Graesin Cass. Garrett Fitzpatrick put in six of Highland’s eight first-quarter points. The second frame was an even affair, with the Knights owning a 16-15 advantage to take a 28-23 lead into the locker room at halftime. Gavin Hankins and Jordan Bellamy each netted five points in the frame for Highland, while Jax Wenger rainbowed in a pair of threes and 10 points in the quarter for Northmor.
Scoring stepped up after the break, with an 18-15 third quarter going to Northmor. Grant Bentley led the Golden Knights in the quarter with eight, and Fitzpatrick added five more for the Scots. The fourth quarter saw 46 points go through the hoops, 25 by Highland and 21 by Northmor, with the Golden Knights answering often enough to hold on for the four-point win. Max Lower sank five free throws and nine points for the Knights while Rider Minnick scored seven and Hankins six in the fourth for Highland.
Bentley finished with 18 to lead Northmor, supported by Wenger with 14, Lower with 12 and Cass with 11. Highland was led by Fitzpatrick with 15, Bellamy with 14, Brock Church with 12 and Hankins with 11.
Benvie hits 32, but Danville outlasts Granville, 57-54
In the Danville-Granville game Feb. 8, the Blue Devils eked out a three-point win over host Granville Christian Academy, 57-54, despite a 32-point performance by GCA’s Joe Benvie.
GCA jumped out to a 12-9 lead in the first, fighting off five points by Danville’s Darren Mickley. Benvie hit four in the first but stepped it up in the second with nine of GCA’s 11 points. The Blue Devils countered with 18 to take a 27-23 lead at halftime. Mickley netted eight more and sank a pair of threes for D-Ville, to go with beyond-the-arc makes by Cam Miller and Spencer Payne.
Benvie gave the Devils all they could handle in the third with nine more points, and GCA tied it after three at 40-40. Benvie kept it close with 10 more in the decisive fourth, but Danville outscored Glanville 17-14 to take the three-point win. Mickley again made his presence felt with seven points in the final frame.
Mickley wound up with 23 points to pace Danville, and Walker Weckesser scored nine. With the win, Danville improved to 8-11 and Granville dropped to 12-8.
Columbus Academy bests Freddies, 54-47, as both teams struggle from the line
In a battle of missed free throws, Columbus Academy traveled to Fredericktown on Tuesday, used a big third quarter and handed the hosts a 54-47 loss by controlling the ball and containing the Freddies' offense. The Vikings turned the ball over only three times during the game, to eight for Fredericktown. But the game was lost by Fredericktown and nearly lost by CA, at the charity stripe, where Columbus took 22 free throws and made only 10, while the Freddies were at the line for 20 and also sank only 10.
The Vikings took an 11-10 lead in the first on five shots from the field and 0-for-2 at the line. The Freddies countered with four field goals and 2-for-4 at the stripe. In the second, Fredericktown tied it at 23-23 on five points by Kaid Carpenter as the team went 2-for-8 at the line. The Vikings kept pace and only sank 3 of 7 at the line.
The Vikings went ahead to stay with a 17-6 third quarter to take an 11-point lead into the fourth. CA hit eight shots from the field and sank its only free throw in the quarter, while Fredericktown managed only two field goals and went 2-for-3 from the line.
The Freddies fought back with 18 points down the stretch. Teegan Ruhl scored 10 and hit all four of his free throws – the Freddies hit all five of their penalty shots in the quarter. The Vikings answered with 14 points to hang on for the win, though they sank only 6 of 12 at the line.
Ruhl paced Fredericktown with 18 points, Carpenter hit 11 and Brady Lester added 11. The Freddies dropped to 11-9, 6-5 KMAC after the loss, and Columbus ran its record to 13-4, 6-3 in Mid-Ohio.
Disciplined Bulldogs shoot down Red Birds, 46-31
The East Knox Bulldogs stopped visiting Loudonville cold in the first and third quarters, and after a slow start themselves took control of the game after the break to take a 46-31 win at home Tuesday.
Playing disciplined defense, the ‘Dogs committed only six fouls and allowed the Red Birds to take only two free throws all game (both in the first quarter), while taking 18 at the stripe themselves.
A low-scoring first quarter saw the Bulldogs take a 5-4 lead, losing an opportunity for more by sinking only one of four free throws. Both teams emerged from their scoring slumber in the second, with the ‘Birds taking a 10-9 advantage to tie the game at the half, 14-14. Shane Knepp put in six of the ‘Dogs’ nine in the quarter.
The Bulldogs went back to defensive work in the third, again holding Loudonville to just four points. EK’s offense woke up fully in after the break to dominate the Red Birds 21-4, essentially putting the game away with a 17-point lead heading into the fourth. The Bulldogs got all their scoring from three players in the period, with Knepp netting nine and Dillon Moreland and Peyton Lester each adding six.
EK cruised in the fourth, and Loudonville was able to cut the led by only a deuce, 13-11. Five players chipped in to score for EK in the quarter. For the game, East Knox was led on the score sheet by Knepp with 17 and Lester with 14.
The win brought East Knox to 15-5 on the season (8-3 KMAC), and Loudonville fell to 3-14 overall.
Indians shut down in the fourth, Rife scores 34 as Comets blaze to 66-44 win
Mount Gilead hung close to Elgin all night long on Feb. 8 and then were dominated in the fourth to lose what had been a tight game by 22 points. Along the way, fans were treated to an offensive display by Elgin’s Carson Rife, who scored 34 points.
The Comets came out with energy and took a 19-12 first-quarter edge as Rife set the stage with 11 points. The Indians countered with threes from Elijah Chafin, Matthew Bland and Carter Kennon. Mount Gilead cut into the lead with a 15-13 second quarter to make the score 32-27 in favor of the Comets at the half. Bland led the Indians' attack with three from beyond the arc and 11 points in the quarter, and Rife answered with seven.
In the third, Mount Gilead hung close; sliced Elgin’s led by another point and trailed 46-42 going into the fourth. Kennon swished two more threes and scored eight points in the third for Mount Gilead, and Rife was held to only a 3-pointer from downtown. Then came the fourth, and the Comets soared across the sky and the court in a 20-2 blow-out to win by 22. Rife dropped in three threes and 11 points to seal the runaway. Mount Gilead was led in the game by Bland's 17 points and Kennon's 11.
The loss dropped the Indians’ overall record to 8-12, while Elgin improved to 16-4.
