North Putnam offense shoots down Brown County

BAINBRIDGE — Brown County came into North Putnam on Saturday night and brought chaos and frenetic play.

The Eagles play a fast-paced pressure style of ball, but the Cougars sent them back to Nashville with a 79-57 loss.

North handled the pressure and, behind big nights from Nolan Hackleman and Isaac Pickel, the Cougars raced to the victory in a Western Indiana Conference high school boys' basketball game.

Despite giving up 70 field goal attempts by the Eagles, North was efficient offensively by hitting almost 55 percent (29-of-53) from the floor and maintained a double-digit lead for the final three quarters.

The win improved the Cougars to 8-8 on the season and 5-4 in the WIC. Brown County dropped to 7-7 and 3-4 in conference action.

“The first three quarters, offensively, I thought we did a pretty good job. I don’t know how many turnovers we had, probably more than we would like. But the way Brown County plays, they cause a lot of chaos and turn people over. We did a good job of handling that,” North Putnam head coach Vince Brooks said.

Isaac Pickel got the Cougars started with three quick points and Nolan Hackleman scored nine quick points for a 12-2 Cougar lead.

North then closed the first quarter with a 9-2 run as Hackleman had 13 of his game-high 26 points in the opening stanza. The Cougars were able to build a 21-11 lead despite seven first quarter turnovers.

“What can I say about Nolan. He has really been playing at a high level for us. His effort is great,” Brooks said.

North’s offense continued to click in the second period. Brady Barber opened the quarter with a jumper and finished it with a three-pointer. The senior picked up seven points in the second quarter.

Pickel had six inside for the Cougars as they were able to turn a 10-point first quarter lead into a 22-point halftime lead. The Cougar defense was effective as well as they limited the Eagles to just 10-of-31 shooting in the half.

"Brady has really been playing well. By that, I mean his consistency has really improved. He was really effective tonight,” Brooks said.

The Cougar offense kept coming in the third period. Seven players from North would score in the quarter as it efficiently knocked down 9-of-15 shots and again extended the lead.

North would lead by 31 points at 66-35 until an Eli Harden three-pointer at the buzzer set the third quarter score at 66-38.

“Our offense was really good tonight. We scored 20 points or more in the first three quarters. We did a good job of handling the physical chaos and staying focused,” Brooks said.

Brown County would cut into the margin a little in the fourth quarter as it continued its full-out pressure while the Cougars would go to their bench in the period. It was not near enough to truly threaten the Cougars as they would set the final margin at 79-57.

Hackleman led all scorers with 26 points. Barber and Pickel would chip in with 14. Pickel had a double-double with 17 rebounds. Matt Horn led Brown County with 14, while Cash Harden had 12.

“Isaac has really improved inside. He has a knack for rebounding on the offensive end. He is really good at following plays to the rim and getting himself in position to get the rebound,” Brooks said.

The Cougars will travel to Southmont on Tuesday for their next contest.

BROWN COUNTY (57) – Horn 7-17 0-0 14, Bond 0-7 3-4 3, Wrightsman 3-122 2-3 8, Lewis 1-5 0-0 2, C. Harden 6-10 0-0 12, J. Hubbard 4-11 0-0 8, E. Harden 2-6 0-2 5, B. Hubbard 2-3 0-0 5. Totals 25-70 FG, 5-9 FT, 57 TP.

NORTH PUTNAM (79) – Helderman 2-6 0-0 5, Farrington 2-2 0-0 2, Barber 5-10 2-5 14, Pickel 6-8 2-4 14, Hackleman 8-15 6-6 26, Windmiller 3-6 0-0 7, Augusta 1-2 1-2 4, Starr 0-0 1-2 1, Kramer 1-2 0-0 2, Bra. Woodall 2-2 0-0 4, Bro. Woodall 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-53 FG, 12-19 FT, 79 TP.

3-point shooting –BC 2-13 (Horn 0-2, Bond 0-3, Wrightsman 0-4, Lewis 0-1, E. Harden 1-2, B. Hubbard 1-1), NP 9-22 (Helderman 1-4, Kramer 0-1, Farrington 0-1, Barber 2-5, Hackleman 4-7, Windmiller 1-2, Augusta 1-2) Rebounds –BC 27 (Horn 3, Bond 1, Wrightsman 3, Lewis 6, C. Harden 3, J. Hubbard 7, E. Harden 2, B. Hubbard 1), NP – 47 (Helderman 4, Farrington 2, Barber 6, Bro. Woodall 1, Pickel 17, Hackleman 6, Windmiller 5, Augusta 2) FG Pct. – BC 35.7, NP 54.7. FT Pct. – BC 55.6, NP 63.2. Turnovers – BC 17, NP 24.