PUTNAM COUNTY CLASSIC FINAL: Cougars make it three-straight with win in fitting finale over Eagles

North Putnam won its third-straight Putnam County Classic in the best game of the tournament Friday night over South Putnam 67-58. The Cougars trailed 33-30 at halftime but won the second half 37-25 to maintain the Putnam County Bucket.

Banner Graphic/TRENT SCOTT

When it came to time to crown the winner of the Putnam County Classic, North Putnam and South Putnam rose to the occasion and played out the best basketball of the two-day tournament.

A back-and-forth first three quarters saw the Cougars take a small lead into the fourth quarter, one that was nurtured and grown into a 13-point gap that an exhausted Eagle side could not cut into quickly enough as the defending champs made it three titles in-a-row in a 67-58 win.

“We definitely have a lot of confidence that we play, the athleticism and the endurance that some of our guys have,” North Putnam head coach Vince Brooks said. “We may not be the biggest group but we have smart guys that can handle the ball well and when you have that, you can do a lot.

“We’re a little disappointed about the free throws tonight but we’ll continue to work on that and hopefully get better but we’re super happy for the guys. They earned a very hard-fought, tough win against a quality opponent.”

“We were so gassed,” South Putnam head coach Kyle Swafford said. “You could see midway though the third quarter the toll that the game was taking.

“We didn’t have our team at full strength for reasons mostly out of our control but I couldn’t be more proud of the six we had. They played their guts out and as a coach that’s all I can ask for because when you’re faced with adversity, I’ve had teams that have folded, given up or not have that fight in them because things aren’t going their way.

“This group did the opposite,” Swafford added. “They competed, played all 32 minutes and they were gassed out there.”

South Putnam started the game with baskets from Drew Hill and Austen Branam before threes from Kaden Helderman and Brayden Monnett made it 6-4 North Putnam.

Hill scored to tie the game at 6-6 before the teams traded off threes, leaving the Eagles with a 12-11 advantage.

Brady Barber hit 1-of-2 at the line and Monnett closed the quarter with a drive that gave the Cougars a 14-12 lead after eight minutes of play.

Helderman and Monnett added threes to start the second period for a 20-15 lead though Cameron Bozell and Wyatt Mullin hit threes in reply to shrink the gap to 22-21.

A second Bozell three closed the gap to 26-24 with Mullin tying the game off a steal and Branam giving the Eagles a 28-26 lead.

Matt Farrington tied things up at 28-28 and Monnett would do so again at 30-30 but Hill hit a three at the horn to give South Putnam a 33-30 lead at halftime.

Like the previous night against Greencastle, North Putnam got off to a quick start to the second half as Helderman scored and Monnett converted a three-point play.

After a Bozell three, Nolan Hackleman cleaned up a pair of free throw misses with a putback basket before adding a three following a Farrington trey for a 43-38 lead.

Hackleman added a second three that Hill answered in kind as the Cougars took a 47-43 lead into the final period of play.

“We just play better in the second half,” Brooks said about the better play in the third quarter. “We recenter and refocus at halftime, identify what we want to change, do differently and focus on and, man, it’s just been consistently better second halves than first halves.

“I need to figure out how to get these guys to play like a fourth quarter in the first quarter.”

Hackleman scored the opening basket of the fourth quarter and, with a six-point lead, North Putnam began to chew up clock by forcing the Eagles to chase on defense.

With a third of its normal rotation not available, South Putnam was already fatigued and the additional defensive legwork began to tell as the Cougars reached the midway point of the period with a nine-point lead after a Barber three.

“Give North Putnam credit,” Swafford said about the short rotation and the Cougars’ gameplan. “They were subbed in and out; I was a little jealous that they subbed as they did.

“That said, I’m very proud of the guys. They showed me a lot of heart and competitive spirit that any coach would love. I have nothing but love for my guys and congratulations to North Putnam as they made the plays down the stretch. Coach Brooks does a great job with those guys and they’re a hard team to guard.”

Branam hit a jumper but the Eagles put North Putnam in the bonus soon thereafter, Helderman hitting both free throws, while Monnett stole the ball twice and feed both Barber and Hackleman for layups in transition and a 58-45 advantage.

The Eagles had a final burst in them as Branam scored five points and Hill added two free throws to trim the gap to six at 58-52 while a Hill three made it 60-55 with 1:18 to play.

Despite difficulties at the free throw line, the Cougars knocked enough down in the final minute to keep South Putnam from getting any closer and retained possession of the Putnam County Bucket once again.

“We’re very fortunate to win this year,” Brooks said about winning for a third-straight season. “It was wide-open as you could see from the tight contests in all the games.

“Anything could have happened and thankfully, our guys just played really strong second halves both nights to seal the deal.”

Scoring

South Putnam (11-22 2FG; 9-25 3FG; 9-13 FT) — Hill 23, Branam 11, Mullin 9, Bozell 9, Garner 4, Dorsett 2

North Putnam (14-24 2FG; 9-21 3FG; 12-26 FT) — Monnett 18, Hackleman 16, Helderman 15, Barber 9, Farrington 8, Pickel 1

Statistics