Sports
Related Photos
HOOPS: NW surges to beat Peru in OT
Northwestern boys basketball coach Jim Gish had to call his first time out Thursday less than three minutes into the game against Peru. The visiting Bengal Tigers were up 10-3 and threatening to blow the game open.
The Purple Tigers stuck around then, but in the fourth quarter, the Bengal Tigers again looked like they might run away and hide. Peru opened a 42-32 lead with 6:10 to play.
Northwestern never flinched. The Purple Tigers stayed poised, surged back into the game, forced overtime, then kicked in the afterburners in the bonus session to win 62-53.
After the game went to OT tied at 48-all, Northwestern scored the first eight points of overtime to take control. Jimmy Corcoran and Brayden Merrell were the main sparkplugs in overtime. Corcoran scored the first six points of the bonus session and Merrell added the last eight, including a perfect 6 of 6 from the free-throw line.
“Defensively, we picked it up again,” Gish said of the game’s final minutes. “It was at that point defensively: are your legs tired or are you going to suck it up and play some basketball? And I just felt like defensively, we dug our heels in and made Peru have some really tough shots.”
Peru coach Eric Thompson acknowledged that it was a big game for the Class 3A No. 8 Bengals, who were trying to maintain pace in the Mid-Indiana Conference race with Western and Hamilton Heights, both of whom have just one league loss. Dropping the 10-point lead in the fourth quarter was critical. That lead evaporated in 72 seconds with a 10-0 NW run.
“Give them tons of credit,” Thompson said of Northwestern. “They wanted it worse than we did when it counted. We did a great job at times, got a 10-point lead … and then for some reason got in panic mode both offensively and defensively.”
“I don’t know why the guys thought they had to play so fast.”
Northwestern’s defense had something to do with that. In a game where both squads went too quickly at times, the Purple Tigers forced the Bengal Tigers to falter down the stretch.
Gish said that speeding up the Bengals on offense “was kind of our goal. It was our goal to make sure that defensively we kept things at a high pace because they are so fundamentally sound. Eric does a great job with those kids, making sure they’re fundamentally sound and they will pick you apart if you just let them come down and pass and cut.”
Zech Sanders didn’t score in overtime for Northwestern, but was vital in the second half as the Purple Tigers hung around, then reeled Peru in. He scored a game-high 23 points and was 5 of 8 from 3-point land. He scored 18 points in the second half.
Merrell finished with 14 points, Corcoran scored 10 and drew praise from Gish for his defense and rebounding in addition to his scoring. Jimmy McKee added seven points.
The Northwestern coach said with this bench, he never feels like the Purple Tigers are out of the game.
“The one thing we as a coaching staff have never questioned about this group of boys is their character,” he said. “If you do things the right way, good things happen for you. This was a hard-fought game by either team, could have gone either way and it was a lot of fun to be a part of from a coach’s standpoint. And I’m sure the fans got their money’s worth too.”
Peru went up 42-32 with 6:10 to play in the fourth quarter on a free throw by Mason Zimmer, who paced the Bengals with 17 points, but fouled out in the fourth quarter after the Purple Tigers closed the gap. Taylor Smith added a dozen points for Peru, Justin Engel had eight and Terry Smith, back from a wrist injury, added six. The Bengals were just 5 of 13 from the free-throw line in the second half.
- Sports
-
-
PREP SPORTS: Undefeated Western tennis squad wins McCutcheon Invite
Western’s boys tennis team improved to 9-0 by beating three teams in Saturday’s McCutcheon Invitational, a four-team round robin event.
-
Kats run wild
Given the recent history of the Kokomo-Muncie Central gridiron rivalry, the Class 5A No. 9-ranked Kats’ 56-14 North Central Conference-opening victory at Walter Cross Field Friday night came as no surprise.
-
Knutson, Kings keep streak alive
In what Northwestern coach John Hendryx called “one of the most physical high school games” he has seen in recent seasons, Lewis Cass fullback/linebacker Josh Knutson seemed right in his element.
-
Focused Panthers rough up Titans
Coming into Friday night’s tilt with Taylor, Western hadn’t lost a football game to the Titans in the teams’ previous 11 meetings.
-
Kokomo’s Austin Colby thrives under the spotlight
The children of coaches are typically held to a higher standard on and off the field, and Kokomo’s Austin Colby is no different.
-
Northwestern readies for tough test from Cass
Mid-Indiana Conference football competition begins tonight and based on recent history, Lewis Cass and Hamilton Heights are good bets to challenge for the top spot. They have combined to win the last seven conference championships, sharing the hardware last season.
-
Prep roundup: Singles sweep sends Maconaquah past Eastern in tennis
Maconaquah beat Eastern 3-2 in Mid-Indiana Conference boys tennis action Wednesday. The match started on the Comets’ home courts before moving to the Howard County Indoor Tennis Center to conclude after rain hit early during the first sets. Once indoors, the singles matches were played first and Maconaquah swept those points to take the team result before the doubles points took the court.
-
Eastern girls celebrate overtime victory over rival NW
Few things beat a feast.
Scoring a landmark victory over a rival, though, that’s one of the few.
-
Prep roundup: Wildkats better Tigers in boys tennis
Strong singles play helped Kokomo turn back visiting Northwestern 4-1 in a boys tennis match on Tuesday. Blake Brown was a 6-2, 6-1 winner at No. 1, Michael Hilton was a 6-4, 6-2 winner at No. 2 and Patrick Cole cruised to a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 3.
-
Opportunity to lead Taylor’s baseball program excites Owens
Brent Owens enjoyed a successful baseball career, playing at the high school, college and semi-pro levels. He enjoyed team and individual success at each stop.
- More Sports Headlines
-
PREP SPORTS: Undefeated Western tennis squad wins McCutcheon Invite
