Pat Rady captures No. 700

Friday, February 26, 2010
Jordan Hayden

EMINENCE -- It happened on the last game of his 46th season of coaching, but it did happen. Cloverdale's Hall of Fame head coach Pat Rady joined some elite company after capturing his 700th career victory in his team's 89-77 win over Eminence Thursday. Rady becomes one of just four Indiana High School coaches with 700 or more wins for a career.

Following the game, Rady wanted to thank his family and one special person who has occupied a spot on the bench with him for a very long time.

"I want to thank my wife Margaret and it's neat to have my son on the bench, Patrick. My son Michael called and wished me luck, so my family has been very loyal to me and I appreciate the support they've given me," Rady commented. "Then, it was neat to have on the bench Jim Sharp, who was with me on my first win at Bainbridge. He was my assistant at Bainbridge when we won our first game in 1964 and he was on the bench there tonight when we won our 700th. It was nice to have Jim with me from the beginning and he's still with me and I really appreciate him."

Jacob Clark

Almost as important to Rady was the fact his team was able to shake off a four-game funk and display the kind of offensive prowess that characterized their early season wins. A trio of Clovers led the way, combining for 66 points on the night.

It was apparent from the opening tip that the Clovers were relaxed, something that had been lacking in their previous four contests. They simply came out and set to work.

Jordan Hayden got the Cloverdale offense started by hitting a three-pointer to give the Clovers an early lead. It also began a night for Hayden that ended with him connecting on 8-for-8 from the floor, including 6-for-6 from beyond the arc.

Brandon Moon

After losing Brandon Moon early in the first half due to foul trouble, fellow senior Jacob Clark took over the offense at the point and proceeded to elevate the energy even more. He scored nine points in the opening quarter and led the Clovers at the half with 14.

Both teams played a tight game in the first half, but as soon as Cloverdale grew a lead on the Eels, Eminence stormed back to seize a 36-35 advantage at the break when Grant Shupe hit a bucket at the buzzer.

If anyone thought the Clovers were going to come out in the second half tight and feel the pressure of their current losing streak weigh them down, they were dead wrong. They came out relaxed once again; something Rady mentioned was emphasized to the team.

"I thought the defense and I thought we had good ball movement, we hit the boards, we shot well, and like I say, when you shoot well, it takes care of a lot of the things that's been happening," he said. "I thought we challenged, we told them tonight to just go out and have fun. Be a little loosey-goosey."

And loosey-goosey they were.

Cloverdale easily shrugged off the one-point deficit and outscored the Eels 28-16 in the third quarter to take a 63-52 advantage into the fourth quarter of play.

The Clovers continued to play aggressive and loose, all the while putting up points on Eminence in the fourth.

One of the best examples of this was when Clark took to the free throw line late in the quarter. After making his first, Clark missed his second, but came flashing from the free throw line, caught his miss in midair and put it up and in to give CHS a 79-60 advantage.

Down the stretch, Cloverdale converted 11-of-16 tosses from the charity stripe to come away with their 89-77 win. As the buzzer sounded, Rady gave his son Patrick a hug and greeted each of his players with the widest of grins.

Clark led Cloverdale with 25 points, followed by Hayden with 23 and Moon with 18.

Asked how he was feeling after his team's win, Rady gave more thanks to the people around him and the fans that have continued to support his squad.

"I'm very proud," he said humbly. "These guys have come through a lot of tough times and for them to get a win and get this win it means a lot for me. All the teams, all the assistant coaches, all the people I've worked for have been great. Our fans -- we had great fan support tonight and they came over and I've had so many past players e-mail me, some of them came tonight and came to the locker room. It was just great to see some of the past players.

"The good Lord has blessed me. I'm a fortunate person," he added.

Rady went on to say the win was a solid one because of the level of opponent they defeated on Thursday and he knew if his team hadn't brought their A-game, the outcome might have been a different one. He summed up his team's effort with three things that are essential for a winning squad.

"I thought you saw a team that played with passion, played with desire, and no question we played as a team," he said.

Cloverdale will face Monrovia to open the South Putnam Class 2A Sectional Tuesday at 6 p.m.

At Eminence

Cloverdale 22 13 28 26 -- 89

Eminence 19 17 16 25 -- 77

Individual Stats

Cloverdale (89) -- Clark 25, Hayden 23, Moon 18, Salter 10, Dean 8, Moore 5. Totals: 29-46 FG, 19-31 FT, 89 TP.

Eminence (77) -- Wagner 24, Watkins 16, Shupe 16, Marcum 9, Szalay 6, Gore 5, Ford 1. Totals: 29-65 FG, 12-24 FT, 77 TP.