Crusaders out-battle Redskins
CCHS hits late freebies, hangs on to sweep Indian Creek
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STEUBENVILLE -- When halftime began during Tuesday night's contest, the Catholic Central and Indian Creek boys basketball teams had to be separated and sent to their locker rooms one by one, as a brawl nearly broke out.
Both squads had that energy and intensity throughout the game. In the end, the Crusaders did just enough to squeak out a 50-48 victory to complete the season series
"It's a great, ugly win. I liked that it was two competitive teams facing off," Central head coach Don Ogden said. "There were some extracurricular activities. Some of it was because you're playing a cross-town rival."
What drove the Crusaders (9-8) to victory came from the charity stripe. Beginning at the 1:20 mark in the fourth quarter, Central went 6 for 7. Before that, it was 2 for 11. Those were instrumental because the Redskins (5-11) kept clawing back and nearly took the lead later on.
"They just made one more play than we did. I couldn't have asked our kids to play harder or better defense," Creek head coach Joe Dunlevy said. "They did everything we asked them to do. They just made one more play, and they're a good, senior-laden team.
"I watched them Saturday when they beat Shenandoah, who's a really good team. Give them credit for winning (Tuesday)."
With 80 seconds remaining, Central's Andrew Dorsey hit a pair of freebies to put the Crusaders ahead, 46-42. Creek's Logan Kuczykowski, who finished with a game-high 10 assists, found Logan Schaffer in the paint for an easy layup before Vince Carapellotti stepped to the line.
He missed the front end of the 1-and-1, leaving the score at 46-44. The Redskins drove the clock down to 25 seconds when Isaiah Vandine attempted a go-ahead 3-pointer with a hand in his face. The ball almost made it halfway through the net before rimming out.
Carapellotti was fouled with 21.3 seconds left, and this time he made both free throws, increasing the lead back to four.
Schaffer was fouled with 4.8 seconds left, made the first and a timeout was called. He then hit the second, hoping the Crusaders would miss at least one.
Charles Miller had other plans, sinking two charity-stripe tosses for a 50-46 advantage. Going full court with a few seconds remaining, Schaffer grabbed an offensive rebound following a missed shot and put it back in as the final buzzer sounded off.
"What we emphasized in the second half was to focus on the game. We're here to play basketball and win a game and not get into anything we shouldn't be involved in," Ogden said. "We were able to do that for the most part in the second half.
"In the first half, we got into some foul trouble. I had to sit two of my starters for almost a quarter and a half. We overreacted too much to a lot of things Creek was doing."
Those two starters were Miller, who finished with a game-high 19 points (14 in the second half) and five rebounds, and Toby Lesnefsky. Although they sat for the better part of the opening half, Central held a 22-21 advantage at the break.
Early in the second quarter, the Redskins held a 13-9 advantage before the Crusaders bolted on a 10-2 scoring run. Dorsey hit back-to-back 3-pointers at the end of it, forcing a Creek timeout.
"Trust me, I was sweating. There was a certain point I was going to put (Miller and Lesnefsky) in if the deficit became too large," Ogden said. "The other guys stepped it up. Different guys scored in different ways."
Creek fought back to trail by one at halftime, then three (34-31) after three quarters. The Redskins led by one at the half Friday at Harrison Central before losing by 18 points.
"We made shots," Dunlevy said on the differences. "We're starting to shoot with confidence. Like I told the kids, that's probably how well we should've played in the first game (against Central on Dec. 26, a 50-36 defeat)."
The Redskins finished just 3 of 6 from the foul line and were out-rebounded, 28-18.
Dorsey ended up with 10 points and five boards. Carapellotti had a near triple-double with eight points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Ryan Gorman produced 11 points, two rebounds a pair of dimes.
For Creek, Schaffer led with 18 points and five rebounds. Vandine had nine points and four boards. Landon Pownall drained three triples off the bench for nine points.
LOOKING AHEAD
Following Sunday's draw for the upcoming OHSAA tournament, the Crusaders drew the 12th seed in Division IV East and will travel to sixth-seeded Caldwell on Feb. 23. Toronto is No. 11, although Central swept the season series and has a better overall record. Strength of schedule may have been a factor.
"Our guys were sort of frustrated that were seeded 12th. They have a little bit of a chip on their shoulders," Ogden said. "Will that amount to anything? I don't know. It is a little bit of a motivator. I hope we do play with a chip on our shoulders the rest of the way."
Meanwhile, the Redskins are seeded 16th in Division II East and head to second-seeded Steubenville on Feb. 20.
"We were 5-9 (entering the draw). That's what happens when you only have five wins," Dunlevy said. "We have an opportunity to get on the bus and play Steubenville again. That's always a challenge and is always fun."
JV ACTION
The Redskins held on for a tight 29-26 victory in the jayvee contest. Creek's Drake Freshwater scored 11 points, while Central's Anthony Venditti had nine.
UP NEXT
Indian Creek: Tentatively travels to Union Local on Friday and Saturday.
CCHS: Tentatively head to Monroe Central on Friday.
Catholic Central 50, Indian Creek 48
Creek 11 10 10 17 -- 48
Central 9 13 12 16 -- 50
INDIAN CREEK (5-11): L. Kuczykowski 1 0-0 3; Schaffer 8 2-3 18; Williams 2 1-2 7; Wright 1 0-0 2; Vandine 4 0-0 9; Francis 0 0-0 0; Morelli 0 0-0 0; Vandeborne 0 0-0 0; M. Kuczykowski 0 0-0 0; Pownall 3 0-0 9. TOTALS: 19, 3-6: 48.
CATHOLIC CENTRAL (9-8): Miller 7 3-6 19; Hough 0 0-0 0; Carapellotti 3 2-5 8; Gorman 5 1-4 11; Lesnefsky 0 0-0 0; Dorsey 3 2-2 10; Harris 1 0-0 2; Venditti 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 19, 8-17: 50.
3-POINT GOALS: Indian Creek 7 (L. Kuczykowski, Williams 2, Vandine, Pownall 3); Catholic Central 4 (Miller 2, Dorsey 2). REBOUNDS: Indian Creek 18 (Wright 6); Catholic Central 28 (Carapellotti 8). ASSISTS: Indian Creek 16 (L. Kuczykowski 10); Catholic Central 11 (Carapellotti 8). TURNOVERS: Indian Creek 13; Catholic Central 14.