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Tiger Cubs hold off Sparkplugs for win
GREENCASTLE -- Old rivalries die hard. Greencastle welcomed former WCC foe Speedway Friday and even though the Sparkplugs were in the midst of a six-game losing streak, they gave GHS all they could handle. In the end, Greencastle held on to a 63-54 victory and move to 5-3 on the year.
"Basketball, and I know coach (Pat) Rady talks about this all the time, it's a game of runs and so much of it is how you respond to those runs," GHS head coach Troy Greenlee said. "Obviously we were a little on our heels at the end and made some mistakes. I thought we made some mistakes without them forcing us to make mistakes and that was a little disappointing."
As with is female counterparts, Greencastle held a 10-point advantage at halftime, 28-18, but the boys' squad was able to dig in its heels and hold off a hard charging Speedway squad.
The Tiger Cubs entered the final quarter up 12 points, 42-30, but Speedway quickly began knocking down shots and whittling away at the GHS lead.
With his team up 60-54, and the Sparkplugs building momentum, senior Spencer Moore was able to get his hands on and ultimately block the three-point shot of Speedway's Justin Brent. He proceeded to knock down 3-of-4 free throws to close the game and guarantee the Tiger Cubs victory.
Greenlee had talked about the disappointment he felt with his team committing unforced mistakes, but he was pleased with other aspects of his team's play.
"The other side of it is we responded when they did come back and guys made some plays. I know Spencer Moore's play down there on that three-point shot, I told him it was as big of defensive play as I've seen in a while. Those are the kinds of things that you have to be able to do on both ends of the floor. You have to be able to make plays when it's really tight," Greenlee said.
Greencastle built its first half lead with Nick Hutcheson and Tyler Lewis combining for 18 points. The team was able stake claim to the inside and in the second half Hutcheson only got better.
Hutcheson scored 17 of his game-high 25 points in the second half, with Lewis adding eight of his 19 point total.
As pleased as Greenlee was with the production of Hutcheson and Lewis, he point out other players that had an impact as well.
"I know Keith Carr might not have even scored tonight, but he had a big part in this game because he really understands the game," Greenlee said. "Defensively he's always in the right place. Just a lot of things he does that might not show up in the scorebook that really make a difference and you have to have guys like that. You have to have guys that are willing to be selfless and not worrying about getting the glory, just wanting the team to win."
Greenlee said it was a total team effort that helped lift the Tiger Cubs to victory Friday.
Greencastle will host West Vigo today with the junior varsity tipping off at 4 p.m.
At Greencastle
Speedway 12 6 12 24 -- 54
Greencastle 14 14 14 21 -- 63
Individual Scores
Speedway -- Brent 24, Anderson 7, Anglea 7, Carroll 2, Jenkins 6, McGraw 4, Roth 4. Totals: 20-56 FG, 11-14 FT, 54 TP.
Greencastle -- Hutcheson 25, Lewis 19, Moore 7, Stuchwisch 5, Haussin 3, Carr 4. Totals: 25-57 FG, 11-17 FT, 63 TP.
Next game -- Greencastle will host West Vigo today with the junior varsity tipping off at 4 p.m.