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Eagles down Wildcats
Schroer, Moore score 19 each in South Putnam win
CLINTON -- There were times in the first half Tuesday night where it looked as though South Vermillion would run away from South Putnam.
Trailing by 11 twice midway through the second quarter, the Eagles began to lock down the defensive side of the ballgame and got 19 points apiece from Trey Moore and Jake Schroer to knock off the host Wildcats 57-47.
South Putnam coach Troy Burgess said the players kept things tight when the game could have gotten away and got the reward they deserved.
"We did what we had to do, which is shorten the game and keep the game in the 40s and 50s," Burgess said. "I thought defensively the kids did what we wanted.
"They communicated, got out on the shooters and rebounded well out of the zone. Offensively, we took care of the basketball and played inside-out. When we do that, we can be pretty effective."
Jordan Branz orchestrated the offense early on for South Vermillion, scoring 11 points in a first quarter that was hotly contested.
South Putnam (4-13, 0-5 WCC) kept cutting the gap down to a point or two until Branz and DJ McMasters buried threes near the end of the period to give South Vermillion a 17-10 lead.
Two more McMasters threes and a Tristan Spivey basket had South Putnam down double digits, but a lockdown defense from the Eagles kept the Wildcats off the board for the final three minutes of the half.
The visitors closed the gap to seven at halftime and cut IT to one at the start of the third on a three from Schroer and a three-point play by Moore.
Trevor Long tied the game at 29 and Schroer gave the Eagles their first lead at 31-30 moments later.
Schroer hit two more threes before the quarter closed, which helped negate a 10-point spurt by South Vermillion (6-12, 1-4 WIC) in the final two minutes, as it kept the lead heading into the fourth quarter.
McMasters opened the quarter with a three but South Putnam continued to frustrate the Wildcats and as shots began to go astray, the Eagles poured on the offense late.
An Aaron Hines putback was the last made shot the home crowd saw for nearly five minutes, as the Eagles went on a 14-0 run by Schroer, Moore and Jimmy Rutter.
South Vermillion managed just one more Spivey basket as the Eagles picked up their fourth win of the season.
Burgess said attacking inside early through Moore and Long paid dividends for Schroer late in the game.
"We took it at them inside in the first half and I don't think they had an answer for Trevor or Trey down low," Burgess said. "The only thing they could do was double down and once they did that, Jake was able to spot up and he hit some open looks.
Along with his 19 points, Moore had 12 rebounds. Trevor Long added 11 points for the Eagles, while Rutter accounted for the other eight South Putnam points.
With South Putnam hosting Owen Valley for senior night, Burgess wanted the team to feed off the Tuesday night win and take the game to the Patriots.
"We haven't played well against Owen Valley the last two years so we've got something to prove to ourselves," Burgess said. "We haven't competed with them and we've let them take the fight to us.
"We've got to do a better job of competing and if we do that, we'll let everything else take care of itself."
At South Vermillion
South Putnam 10 10 17 20 -- 57
South Vermillion 17 10 13 7 -- 47
South Putnam -- Schroer 19, Moore 19, Long 11, Rutter 8, Chestnut 0, McHugh 0, Carmichael 0; Totals -- 20-41 FG, 6-12 3-FG, 11-18 FT.
South Vermillion -- McMasters 14, Branz 13, Spivey 8, Waldron 7, Hines 5, Luft 0, Crouch 0, Strayer 0, Bogetto 0; Totals -- 19-54 FG, 6-25 3-FG, 3-6 FT.
Rebounding (Offensive): SP 23 (6), SV 21 (8). Assists: SP 8, SV 7. Blocks: SP 0, SV 0. Steals: SP 5, SV 7. Turnovers: SP 14, SV 8. Fouls: SP 6, SV 15.
Next Game: South Putnam (4-13, 0-5 WCC) hosts Owen Valley (11-8) Friday for Senior Night.