Blake Sipes put up a double-double to lead the Fredericktown boys’ basketball team (5-4, 3-1) to a 58-57 overtime victory over Mount Gilead on Jan. 10, picking up a key KMAC win.
Fredericktown lead 15-10 after one quarter, but Mount Gilead outscored the Freddies 13-11 in the second quarter to cut the deficit and make it 26-23 at the half. The Indians took the lead in the third quarter, outscoring Fredericktown by five points to go up 43-41 after three. Fredericktown battled in the fourth to claw their way back into the game, outscoring the Indians 13-11 to go to overtime. The Freddies had a 4-3 overtime advantage to seal the victory.
Mount Gilead led in shooting at 38.3% to 28.2%, and while they were 4-for-12 from three, the Freddies were playing live and die by the three going 8-for-39. The Freddies had a 41-35 rebound advantage, 13-6 assist advantage and the game’s only block. Each team had 10 steals.
“Proud of the guys for handling adversity and staying the course,” said Fredericktown Coach Derek Dibling. “Our ability to hit the glass and rebound the basketball was crucial.”
Sipes had 17 points and 10 boards, with eight of them being offensive. He also had two steals and an assist. Trevor Bellman had 12 points, three rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals. Gavin Toombs recorded nine points, seven rebounds and three assists, while Brode Davis had six points and nine boards, to go with an assist and a steal in a game high 39 minutes. Grant Hartley put up six points, three assists and a pair of steals. Bradyn Clevenger had four points, a rebound, a steal and a block in the win.
“Blake Sipes and Brode Davis were pivotal in securing extra possessions for us and it ultimately was the difference in the game,” Dibling said.
Mount Gilead was led by Gage Baker with 17 points and 11 boards for a nice double-double. He also had an assist and a steal. Cameron Vickers also hit double figures with 12 points, and had six boards and an assist.
"It was a good night for Gage," said Mount Gilead Coach Nathan Davis. "He was aggressive and played his game. He was big on getting rebounds for us."
Hayden Somerlot had nine points, while Rowan Fitzpatrick scored seven points and had two assists, three steals and a rebound. Carson Trainer and Mitchell Sayers each had four points. Sayers added eight boards, and Trainer had three rebounds and an assist. Cole Fricke had two points and an assist in the game.
Coach Davis was proud of the way his Indians squad battled in the game despite the loss.
"Both teams were going back and forth in the end," said Davis. "I thought our team played hard and with high energy to give us a chance to win. We need to take care of the ball better and not have unforced turnovers. Overall, we were in the game and we had opportunities to rebound and we didn't capture those opportunities. We must learn from the loss and get better tomorrow."
