Cubs use FTs to nip Danville in OT

Nick Sutherlin may be a sophomore with little varsity experience, but he obviously isn’t afraid of the big moment, the big stage or the big shot.

After going scoreless and attempting just four shots from the floor for nearly four quarters of play, the Sutherlin packed 12 points into the closing minutes of regulation play and four minutes of overtime in Greencastle’s 58-48 overtime victory against Class 3A No. 7 ranked Danville.

“He’s still learning to play at this level, but he hit a huge three against Crawfordsville (Tuesday) from the corner in the third quarter and then steps out here and hits a huge one tonight for us too. I couldn’t be more proud of the way he’s played so far this year,” Greencastle coach Rector said.

Sutherlin’s huge three was part of a 9-0 run in the final 3:30 regulation play, as Greencastle rallied from a 41-32 deficit to send the game into overtime. In overtime, Sutherlin hit his second three-pointer of the game and was good on 3-of-4 free throws.

“(Sutherlin’s) pretty fearless when he’s out on the floor for a sophomore that has not played much varsity minutes,” Rector said.

The home opener victory over the defending Class 3A regional champion Warriors, with three returning starters, moved the Tiger Cubs to 2-0 on the young season

“No matter what their ranking is (Danville) is always one of the best (3A) teams in the state of Indiana. So for us to come in here and win a game where we were down nine points with (3:30) left in the game, that says a lot about our toughness,” Rector said.

Free throw shooting was the big difference in the game. While Danville had six more field goals, Greencastle hit 20-of-28 free throws, including 14-of-16 in overtime. Brody Whitaker, another sophomore, hit 8-of-9 free throws while scoring a game-high 19 points and Gavin Bollman was 7-for-9 at the line while putting together a double-double of 13 points and 13 rebounds.

“They put a lot of work may into their free throw shooting this off-season and it paid dividends at this point early in the season. So they know what they’ve done at the beginning of the year and in the off season has really paid off for them,” Rector said.

Danville -- returning starters 6-6 Dillon Ware (6 points), 6-3 Connor Jones (8) and 6-5 Sam Comer (17) from last year’s regional championship team -- led 31-26 at halftime as Greencastle struggled to get the ball inside. The Tiger Cubs attempted 10 threes in the opening 16 minutes, while the 6-5 Bollman and 6-6 Plew combined for just four shots under the basket.

“I thought their length and athleticism made it difficult for us to work the ball inside. We did put up too many threes in the first half, but as the game went on we attacked the paint a little bit more with our guards,” Rector said.

The Tiger Cubs still couldn’t get the ball inside in the third quarter and trailed 31-26 going into the fourth quarter. Danville extended the lead to 41-32 lead with 3:30 to play.

Greencastle responded with a 9-0 run to send the game into overtime. The run started with a pass from Parmley inside to Bollman for two points. Whitaker hit two-of-three free throws, but the Tiger Cubs trailed by five.

Then Sutherlin scored his first points of the night, a huge momentum swinging three, that brought the Tiger Cubs within two, 41-39. With 1:20 on the clock, Bollman drained two free throws to tie the game 41-41.

“We got more aggressive as the game went on,” Rector said.

Danville held the ball for one shot, but missed, as did Greencastle’s last-second attempt.

The score changed hand three times in the four-minute overtime before Sutherlin hit his second three of the game to put the Tiger Cubs ahead for good, 47-45, with 1:33 to play.

With the game still on the line, Bollman hit four straight free throws, Whitaker four and Sutherlin two and Plew capped the victory with one.

Greencastle opens Western Indiana Conference play at home on Friday against West Vigo.

DANVILLE (48) — Jones 3-9 1-1 8, Ware 3-12 0-1 6, Comer 7-16 0-1 17, Wooten 2-5 0-0 4, Roof 5-9 1-2 11, Fulwider 1-4 0-0 2, Dostin 0-0 0-0 0, Ward 0-1 0-0 0, Hiland 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-56 FG, 2-5 FT, 48 TP.

GREENCASTLE (58) — Sutherlin 3-7 4-6 12, Plew 2-4 1-4 6, Bollman 3-7 7-9 13, Whitaker 4-11 8-9 19, Parmley 3-13 0-0 8, York 0-0 0-0 0, Maier 0-0 0-0 0, Taylor 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 15-42 FG, 20-28 FT, 58 TP.

3Pt. FG: Dv 4-17 (Comer 3-9, Jones 1-4, Ware 0-2, Roof 0-2), Gc 8-21 (Whitaker 3-8, Sutherlin 2-4, Parmley 2-8, Plew 1-1). Total fouls: Dv 23, Gc 13. Fouled out: Jones, Roof. Technical fouls: None. Turnovers: Dv 8, Gc 8. Rebounds: Dv 33 (Ware 9), Gc 35 (Bollman 13, Plew 8, Whitaker 5). Steals: Dv 5, Gc 3 (Whitaker 2, Plew).

JV game: 59-45 Danville won.

Freshman game: 62-15 Danville won

Next game: On Friday, Greencastle (2-0, 0-0 in WIC West) will host West Vigo and Park Tudor plays at Danville (0-2).