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Panthers maul Hornets in tournament play
By Eric Wade
Daily Mail Sports Editor
HUME -- The favorite to take the Golden Valley Vernon County Conference Tournament title on the boys' side has been Sheldon, all season long. Head coach Tyler Judd's squad proved that the perception about his squad was accurate Tuesday, opening its tournament run with a dominant performance in a victory over the host Hornets, at Hume High School.
Head coach Justin Wehar's squad entered the night as a heavy underdog and it showed, right from the start, as the Hornets weren't able to get much of anything going in the early minutes of the contest. The Panthers seemed to make everything work on both ends of the floor with effortless precision, opening up a 12-0 lead over the first 6 minutes, 31 seconds of the game.
Senior Cain Crawford finally got his squad on the board with 3:29 to go in the first quarter, draining a 3-pointer that made it 12-3. Over the final stretch in the period, however, the Panthers went on another 12-0 run to take a 24-3 lead into the first break.
As the minutes wore on in the first quarter, the Hornets attempted to employ the same tactics that got them their first bucket, swinging the ball out to the corner for a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer by Crawford. After it worked once, however, the Panthers were able to anticipate the move, ultimately allowing Reed Worsley to stuff a pair of consecutive shots by Crawford.
Things did get better for the hosts in the second quarter, but the damage had already been done. The Panthers' defense let up a bit in the period, allowing the Hornets to tally up nine points, but Judd's offense never did let up, adding 13 to its total to take a 37-12 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Despite the fact that Judd began to clear off his bench fairly early in the contest, the Panthers stepped up on the defensive end of the floor, once again, as the second half began. After allowing nine points in the second quarter, the Panthers' defense was not to be shaken again, ultimately allowing just eight points over the contest's final 16 minutes.
By the time all was said and done in the third quarter, the Panthers' offense remained just as potent as it was in the beginning, outscoring the Hornets, 16-2, in the third quarter. That set up what turned out to be a quick fourth quarter, as the Panthers entered the frame with a 53-14 lead, enacting the running clock.
The running clock was the only thing that was able to slow the Sheldon offense in the contest, as the Panthers netted just six points in the final period. Hume equaled that total, handing the Panthers a 39-point victory.
Zach Enochs led the offensive effort for the Panthers as he finished the night with 15 points -- the highest total of any player in the contest -- He was joined in double figures by Corey Baney with 13 and Micah Swanson with 10.
Worsley and Trenton Heckadon each added six, while Nick Guerro, Jacob McCartney, Tristan Hart and Caleb Martin each had two. Cody Hicks rounded out the scoring for the winners with one.
Crawford led the offense for Hume as he finished the night with six, followed by Austin Sullins with five, Dakota Thornburg with four, Billy Thompson with three and Jake Ham with two.
With the win, the Panthers improved to 16-4 on the season and will be back in action on Thursday, taking on Ballard. Tipoff in that contest is scheduled for 4:30 p.m., at Hume High School.
Northeast Vernon County 46, Ballard 19
Despite fouling out of the contest with 4:15 to play, Camille Buttorff led all scorers with 21 points -- enough to beat the Lady Bulldogs of Ballard High School by herself -- helping her squad take an easy, 27-point victory in the Golden Valley Vernon County Conference Tournament Tuesday.
The night's opening contest was never really in question, as the Lady Knights opened up an early, 13-2 lead after the opening quarter, thanks to a stifling pressure defense. That defense held Ballard scoreless for the first 7:57, until Sam Walsh took the ball down the floor after a steal and put in her squad's first bucket of the night.
Things did get a little bit better from there, as Ballard began to find its rhythm in the second quarter. It was already too late, however, as NEVC kept the pressure on, taking a 25-6 advantage into the locker room at halftime.
That advantage grew to 34-9, after three quarters, and the Lady Knights were ultimately able to cruise to victory.
Buttorff was joined in double figures in the contest by Haley Hays, who finished night with 14 points. Karleigh Conner added four, while Haley Elliott finished with three, and Amber Bogardus and Tori Stutzman each had two.
Stachia Cooper led the offense for Ballard with eight points.
Bronaugh 60, NEVC 42
Foul troubles were a major point of issue for head coach Sean Crane's Bronaugh Wildcats as they took the floor Tuesday night against the Northeast Vernon County Knights, on the second night of the Golden Valley Vernon County Conference Tournament.
Most of those foul troubles came at the expense of Bronaugh's leading scorer, Thomas Kerbs, who picked up three fouls in the opening quarter and four in the first half. With 2:47 to go in the third quarter, Kerbs picked up his fifth, forcing him to watch the remainder of the contest from the bench.
Despite his foul troubles, however, Kerbs managed to pick up 17 points in the first quarter alone, helping his squad open up a 25-7 lead, heading into the first break. That lead simply continued to grow as the minutes wore on, even without Kerbs on the floor, in the second quarter. Though his offensive production was miss, the Wildcats still extended their lead by seven more points in the second quarter, taking a 38-13 lead into the locker room at halftime.
From that point on, it was simply a matter of protecting the lead and running out the clock, and that was exactly what Crane did. In the second half, it looked like a much different game, as the Knights outscored Bronaugh, 29-22, but it was simply too late for that comeback to matter as the Wildcats held on to take the 18-point victory.
Kerbs' 17 points were enough to lead all scorers in the contest and he was joined in double figures by Bryce Whitworth, who finished with 11. Chance Wait added nine, while Justin Hudson added six, Jacob Hendrix had four and Cole Diggins finished with three.
Reece Mader, Anthony Hartman, Joe Mader and Parker Bott each finished the night with two and Gabe McEntire and Joseph Terry rounded out the scoring for the winners with one apiece.
Drue Hoagland led the offense for NEVC with 12 points and was joined in double figures by Ty Davis with 10. Mitchell Longstreth added nine, while Jared Hilvert finished with six, Jacob Hazel had three and Jayce Vantellman two.
Bronaugh 39, Sheldon 30
Though the production of a few players was a bit off, the Bronaugh Lady Wildcats were able to put forth a balanced scoring effort that saw 10 players get into the scoring column in a nine-point victory over the Sheldon Lady Panthers Tuesday.
By the time all was said and done, just four players on head coach Sean Crane's Lady Wildcats roster finished the night without scoring. The same was true for the Lady Panthers, as six of their eight players finished the night with at least one point.
The Lady Wildcats not only used their balanced scoring effort to take the victory, but also put forth a dominant performance on the boards. On nearly every trip down the floor, the Lady Wildcats were able to get two or three shots -- sometimes, more -- while Sheldon was one-and-done, on nearly all of its possessions.
That rebounding advantage allowed the Lady Wildcats to overcome their offensive struggles, taking an 8-5 lead after the first quarter. That was as big as the advantage got in the first half, as the two squads matched points in the second quarter, ultimately sending the Lady Wildcats into the locker room with a 19-16 lead.
Things got much better in the third quarter for Crane's squad, as the Lady Wildcats finally found a bit of a rhythm on both ends of the floor. That ultimately resulted in a 9-3 advantage for Bronaugh, sending the game into its final 8 minutes with the Lady Wildcats ahead, 28-19.
The deficit didn't change from there, as the two squads matched points in the final period, handing the Lady Wildcats a nine-point victory.
Mandy Murphy led the offensive effort for the winners with seven points, while Martell Moore and Amanda Raper each finished with six. Courtney Conner added five, Sierra Arens had four, Taylor Stratford contributed three, and Lora Shaw, Cydnee Piper, Becca Schnedler and Heather Baker each finished with two.
Sheldon's Destiny Shelton led all scorers with 14 points in the contest, followed by Logan Lamb with nine. Kylie Seaton, Kylie Leavell and Amy Brzuchowski each added two, while Dani Hibbitts rounded out the scoring for the Lady Panthers with one.