Cloverdale offense stuck in neutral as Edgewood cruises to win

ELLETTSVILLE – Cloverdale traveled to Edgewood on Friday night, but its offense did not get there in time as the Clovers could only manage two points in the first quarter while the Mustangs used a big early lead to cruise to a 62-35 victory in Western Indiana Conference boys’ basketball action.

A 16-2 first-quarter deficit and a poor shooting night at 35 percent (12-of-35) from the field cost the Clovers any chance at staying with the Mustangs.

Edgewood dominated from the start and kept the pedal to the floor in the first half to send the Clovers home with a second loss on the season. Cloverdale is now 0-2 on the season and in the conference, while the Mustangs picked up their first win on the season and in the conference to be 1-2 and 1-0.

“We didn’t come out ready to go. Change in the starting lineup somewhat late changed some roles. We were thinking and basketball is a game that needs to be somewhat instinctual; we were thinking too much,” Cloverdale head coach Karl Turk said.

The first quarter opened a little slow without a score for almost two minutes before Edgewood scored the first seven points, a run broken when Eli Kelley scored for the Clovers.

Edgewood would then reel off nine straight points to close the quarter with a 16-2 lead. Cloverdale was hurt with nine turnovers in the quarter which limited them to just six shots.

The quarter did not end the run by the Mustangs. Edgewood scored the first six points of the second period and led 22-2 before the Clover offense began to get on track as Noah Betz was able to hit a jumper almost halfway through the quarter.

Edgewood’s length and quickness kept bothering the Clovers as they continued to build the lead throughout the quarter, going into halftime with a big 37-11 advantage, as the Clovers would only get three field goals in the half.

“Turnovers hurt us. I think that is a lack of confidence. The kids want to do so well, they sometimes make it worse and try to do too much,” Turk said.

The pace slowed considerably in the third quarter, but that did not help the Clovers cut into the lead as their offensive woes continued. Betz would score the first bucket of the quarter and close the third period with a pair of free throws, but that would be the only points Cloverdale would get as Edgewood built the lead to 48-15 heading into that final quarter.

“It just was a game we were mentally frustrated. We made some uncharacteristic mistakes. Some of those mistakes were the type you usually don’t make at any level,” Turk said.

Edgewood nailed a three-pointer to open the fourth quarter and started the running clock by leading by more than 35 points.

Junior Houston Jobe and freshman Trey Schabel took advantage of the Mustangs backing off the pressure and going zone, scoring the first five points of the quarter and combining for 14 points in the 20-point quarter for the Clovers. That was not enough as the Mustangs would finish off the game with the 62-35 victory.

Edgewood’s Carson Huttenlocker would lead all scorers with 19 points. Cam Ranard and Caden Jones scored 11 points and Mialin White had 10 points as the Mustangs, who placed four players in double figures.

Betz led the Clovers with 14 points and pulled down 11 rebounds for a double-double on the night.

“Noah has worked really hard on his game and has college ball aspirations,” Turk said.

CLOVERDALE (35) – Jackson 1-4 0-0 2, Jobe 2-7 0-0 5, Kelley 1-3 0-2 2, Betz 4-10 6-8 14, McGuire 1-5 1-1 3, Schabel 3-4 1-1 9, Henderson 0-1 0-0 0, Shepherd 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 12-35 FG, 8-12 FT, 35 TP.

EDGEWOOD (62) – Reynolds 1-7 2-2, Huttenlocker 7-17 3-4 19, Boggs 0-2 0-0 0, White 4-4 0-0 10, Ranard 5-9 1-2 11, Jones 4-10 0-0 11, Teran 0-1 0-0 0, Waugh 0-0 0-0 0, McGovern 2-3 1-2 5, Dodds 1-2 0-0 2, Roberts 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 24-56 FG, 7-10 FT, 62 TP.

3-point shooting – CHS 3-21 (Jackson 0-2, Jobe 1-5, Kelley 0-1, Betz 0-6, McGuire 0-2, Schabel 2-3, Henderson 0-1, Shepherd 0-1), EHS 7-24 (Reynolds 0-2, Huttenlocker 2-9, Boggs 0-2, Roberts 0-1, White 2-2, Ranard 0-1, Jones 3-5, Teran 0-1, McGovern 0-1). Rebounds – CHS 24 (Jackson 4, Jobe 3, Kelley 3, Betz 11, Schabel 1) EHS – 34 (Reynolds 5, Huttenlocker 1, Boggs 2, White 4, Ranard 5, Dodds 3, Jones 1, Teran 2, McGovern 4) FG Pct. – CHS 34.3, EHS 42.9. FT Pct. – CHS 66.7, EHS 70.0. Turnovers – CHS 26, EHS 13.