Lady Eagles lose close game, play Cascade in doubleheader Friday

South Putnam pushed the Wildcats to their limits on Tuesday but poor free throw shooting led to a loss at South Vermillion 46-41.

After being down early and starting the second quarter down 14-5 Eagle coach Tim Garver thought it was time to switch up the defense.

"We got down 14-5 at the end of the first, so we switched to a full-court man-to-man to try and up the tempo and up the pressure," Garver said.

The up tempo style worked as South Putnam was able to control the second quarter and take the lead at halftime after going on an 18-5 run.

However South Vermillion was able to control the second half, outscoring the Eagle in the third and fourth quarters.

"Some big problems for us," Garver said. We went 0-10 from the free throw line. Obviously that hurt us. We were actually ahead by one with 1:42. Then they went to a double team and we kind of created our own problems."

The type of hustle play that kept South Putnam in the contest, as well as the highly focused defensive effort are two things that Garver would like to see from his current team when he faces the team he was the assistant coach for last year in Cascade.

"We know Cascade is very high-pressure defensively," he said. "They're a team that will try to get a lot of points by getting defensive steals. So we are working against that style in practice."

South Putnam will be looking to translate that style to the court on Friday.

"We really ramp up the defense and the pressure," Garver said. "Our guards can really cause some frustration. Play like that gives us the opportunity to win games. We just need to learn how to finish those games out."

Garver is also confident that close losses like the one at South Vermillion will help a growing Eagle team and that they will be able to turn those close losses into wins as the season wears on.

"With us being young and having freshmen on the court, We try to do some of those situations in practice," Garver said. "We're definitely working on free throws as well. We've got to go out and keep doing what we are doing. Keep moving forward."

The Eagles (2-5) will be looking to beat their coach's old team and avenge the loss that they took last year.

"We knew there would be challenges," the first-year head coach said. "A very good thing for us is our seniors. We do have good leadership and the kids are working hard. As long as we have that, in the end we'll just come together and be fine."

Garver will be happy to see some of the faces that coached last year and will be even happier if he beats them.

"I'm looking forward to the opportunity to see the kids I once coached," Garver said. "It's going to be a good evening, having known those players and getting a chance to play against those kids. We're going to play hard and see if we can get the win."