Tiger Cubs start fast, pick up second win over Eagles

Greencastle's Cody Evans helped get the hosts off to a good start Friday night against South Putnam, scoring eight of his game-high 13 points in the opening quarter as the Tiger Cubs picked up their second win of the season 49-35 over the Eagles.

Banner Graphic/TRENT SCOTT

Coming in at a combined 1-6, Greencastle and South Putnam both saw Friday night’s WIC boys’ basketball game as a chance to kickstart their seasons.

The Tiger Cubs’ size around the floor proved to be problematic on both ends of the floor as the frontcourt scored 29 points while limiting the Eagles to 20 points through three quarters in a 49-35 win.

“Our guys came out and played really well at the start, something we didn’t do in either game last weekend,” Greencastle head coach Bryce Rector said. “That was a nice change.

“We competed well in the first half of getting good looks and knocking them down and did a nice job defensively all night, making things difficult on (South Putnam’s) two best players. The second half got a little ugly offensively but overall, it’s a win against a county rival.”

“We have to give (Greencastle) a lot of credit because they did a lot of things defensively that got at us,” South Putnam head coach Josh Estridge said. “A lot of things we tried to do on offense were challenged by them but we also have to make shot when we’re open.

“We had several looks in the first half that didn’t fall. If we hit a couple of those, it changes the mindset a little bit. We won the second half and got into them on defense.

“Our ball movement was better, we got into them defensively and the guys kept playing, so we’re proud of them for that,” Estridge added.

Greencastle jumped out to a 9-2 start early on, opening the game with a three from Taygan McRoberts, followed by four points from Cody Evans and a basket from Judah Amis.

Evans would add to more buckets late in the quarter as the Tiger Cubs took a 16-6 lead into the second period.

McRoberts added a second three to open the frame while Evans scored on a putback to make it 22-8.

South Putnam’s offense sputtered as Drew Hill was held to a single basket in the first half, the senior having been saddled with foul trouble when not blanketed by the hosts’ defenders.

Parker Harris would score twice in the second quarter as the two teams traded off baskets in the middle of the period but late baskets inside from Amis and Ian Williamson sent Greencastle into halftime with a 30-14 lead.

“Nathan (Sutherlin) and Sam did a good job on (Hill),” Rector said about holding the Eagle senior to two points in the first half. “They’re a two-headed monster defensively, especially for just being sophomores.

“Their strength, size and savviness makes things difficult, though it was a total group effort that made things difficult. Our goal was to not allow Hill to be comfortable because he can put 30 points on you.”

The hosts started the second half with five-straight made baskets, four of them coming from Sutherlin, as the lead grew to 22 at several different points in the quarter.

“Part of that was on me,” Estridge said about Sutherlin’s eight-point burst in the quarter. “We had talked about doubling in the post but that was against (Greencastle’s) bigger post guys; instead, it was (Sutherlin) backing us down.

“We made adjustments and went from there. We learned a lot about tonight’s game. They made good adjustments but I’m proud of how the kids played and I like the direction we are going.”

Several timeouts in the middle of the quarter broke the scoring rhythm up, a trend that would continue into the final period.

South Putnam scored six-straight points in the frame to get the lead back under 20 as Drew Cline scored on a putback, Hill hit a free throw and Wyatt Mullin scored on a drive.

Anthony Adams, playing in his first game of the season for the Tiger Cubs, scored his first basket of the year off a steal late on before reserves finished out the evening.

“We are happy to have Anthony back,” Rector said about the junior returning to the lineup after injury. “He has the most varsity experience of anyone on our roster.

“You could see in the third and fourth quarter of pulling the ball out and breathing a bit, something Anthony has the experience to do. He knows when to put the foot on the gas and knows when to reset. We’re glad he’s back and healthy.”

Scoring

South Putnam (11-34 2FG; 3-5 3FG; 4-6 FT) — Mullin 10, Hill 9, Harris 6, Cline 4, Garner 3, Bozell 2, Jefferson 1

Greencastle (16-28 2FG; 2-14 3FG; 11-15 FT) — Evans 13, Amis 8, Sutherlin 8, Gooch 6, McRoberts 6, Williamson 4, Adams 4

Statistics