Eagles take care of business in last regular season game

Wednesday, February 20, 2013
South Putnam junior Sawyer Arnold steps back for a jumpshot against North Vermillion on Tuesday. Arnold finished with seven points. (Banner Graphic/TRENT SCOTT)

Every team in Indiana wants to go into the Indiana High School Athletic Association boys' basketball state tournament riding a wave of momentum.

South Putnam will certainly be doing that as the Eagles closed the season by winning six of their last eight games, including Tuesday night's season finale against North Vermillion, 64-28.

Against a Falcon squad that looked to slow down the tempo, a 24-0 run over nine minutes of play cemented a winning record for South Putnam (11-9).

North Vermillion (6-13) enjoyed most of its success in the opening few minutes of the contest, using its lengthy possessions to get open looks and hold an 11-6 lead.

After missing a number of early shots, the hosts turned to rebounding and second chance baskets to climb back into the game and take a 14-11 lead into the second quarter.

The Falcons tied the game at 16-all, but even at that point, South Putnam had begun to speed the game up to a tempo more suited to its own style of play.

The result was one that saw the Eagles close the half on a 13-4 run, capped by a three-point shot at the buzzer by junior Sawyer Arnold to close the half up 29-20.

From there, the hosts turned a close contest into a rout.

South Putnam scored all 18 points the third quarter that seemed as though North Vermillion's shooting radar was scrambled beyond recognition.

Steals by Arnold and sophomore Klayton Vittetow, putbacks from junior Trey Moore and senior Kinser Franklin and a lightning fast Eagle attack put the game away with eight minutes to play.

The rally was capped by a three-pointer from senior Cody Snow, drawing cheers from the home fans as he, along with Franklin, Ryan Chestnut, Logan Pell and Justin Bumgardner played their final home regular season game.

Cheers of appreciation greeted all five as they left the court throughout the final frame as the game ended with the Eagles claiming a lopsided victory.

South Putnam head coach Troy Burgess said that the squad handled what could have been a tricky opponent well.

"North Vermillion tries to slow the game down and play it possession by possession," Burgess said. "I was proud of the kids. We started all five seniors and they haven't had lot of time to play together.

"It took them a little while to get their feet wet in the game, but by the time we added in Sawyer and Trey, we had taken the lead.

"North Vermillion is tough to play against with that type of tempo," Burgess added. "We're trying to get the ball up and down and they're trying to slow it down. It was about who imposed their will and I was proud of the way the kids handled themselves."

Burgess was also impressed with the way the squad came out in the second half and took the game to the Falcons.

"We talked at halftime about finishing the game," Burgess said. "We've had some games this year where we've lost late because we didn't put our foot on the throttle and finish things.

"That's something we've been trying to do all year long. Sawyer hit a big shot to close the half and we wanted to emphasize the first four minutes of the third quartet and not have a letdown.

"We'd been having those lately and I was proud of the kids for not having one," Burgess added. "We came out and picked up where we left off and shut them out in the third quarter.

With South Putnam picking up its first winning regular season in 15 years, Burgess said that he hopes the squad takes the momentum from the end of the year into the tournament.

"You always want to go into the tournament on a high note," Burgess said. "We had nine guys score and everyone got on the court tonight. It was a good way to finish out a good year.

"Hopefully this is a lift going into the tournament because we'll have our hands full once it begins, regardless of whether or not we play Cloverdale or Cascade in the tournament.

"We were fortunate to beat both Cloverdale and Cascade this season, but they're both probably licking their chops to get another piece of us."



At South Putnam
North Vermillion.....11 9 0 8 -- 28
South Putnam.........14 15 18 17 -- 64

Scoring
North Vermillion (6-13): Wright 6, Martin 5, Hollowell 4, Woodard 4, Earl 4, Zumwalt 3, Watson 1, Buchhaas 1. Totals 10-43 FG, 4-19 3-FG, 4-7 FT.
South Putnam (11-9): Moore 14, R. Chestnut 10, Franklin 8, Bumgardner 8, Arnold 7, Long 6, Snow 5, Vittetow 4, Mitchell 2. Totals 30-53 FG, 2-7 3-FG, 2-3 FT.

Rebounding (offensive)
North Vermillion 16 (7), South Putnam 35 (11).

Assists
North Vermillion 3, South Putnam 7.

Steals
North Vermillion 2, South Putnam 7.

Blocks
North Vermillion 3, South Putnam 4.

Turnovers
North Vermillion 16, South Putnam 14.

Fouls
North Vermillion 9, South Putnam 11.

Next Game: South Putnam will face the winner of the Cascade v. Cloverdale game in IHSAA Class 2A Sectional No. 44 play next Friday.

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