Gavin Toombs lit it up for the Fredericktown boys’ basketball team (3-4, 1-1) to lead the Freddies to a tight 53-52 win over Clear Fork (2-4, 1-2) on Dec. 27.
The Colts opened up the game 2-0 but Trevor Bellman launched a three to make it a 3-2 lead with 6:50 left in the first. The teams battled back-and-forth and it was a 17-14 Colts lead after one.
In the second quarter Toombs drilled a three with 6:58 on the clock to cut the lead to 19-17. After a Brode Davis steal, Toombs put the Freddies up 20-19 on a three with 6:30 left in the half. Blake Sipes blocked a shot that went out of bounds, but then stole the ball after an inbound pass and took it coast to coast to go up 24-21 with 4:40 left. Sipes continued his strong defense with another steal moments later. Fredericktown outscored the Colts 16-10 in the quarter to make it a 30-27 lead at the half.
In the third quarter Toombs hit another three to go up 35-29, but then the Colts went on a 7-0 run. Carson Rinehart had a block in the quarter to stop the run, but Clear Fork outscored the Freddies 13-11 to make it a 41-40 game. Both teams scored 12 points down the stretch and Fredericktown walked away with a one point win.
Toombs was 9-for-16 an 5-for-9 from three in a 26 point effort to lead the charge. He tallied eight boards in the win, as well. Sipes was very efficient going 7-for-10 for 14 points. He also had three assists, three steals, a block and a rebound. Rinehart scored nine points to go with two assists and a block. Bellman put up four points, two boards, three assists and a pair of steals.
"I was really proud of our guys the way they fought all night," said Coach Derek Dibling. "They kept their composure, played together and were able to execute down the stretch when the game was really tight. Gavin had a great all around night, both offensively and defensively. He was focused from the start and did a solid job working in the post around the rim and also finding his spots on the perimeter and knocking down big shots when we needed them."
The Freddies shot 44% and 32% from three, while holding Clear Fork to 39% and 18% from deep. The Colts led 30-27 in rebounds, but the Freddies led 15-10 in assists and 2-0 in blocks. Clear Fork had an 8-7 steals advantage.
Next up is a home game against KMAC rival Danville on Jan. 5 at 6 p.m.
