NEVC earns split with Sheldon in GVVC twinbill

Tuesday, December 12, 2017

A 57-43 road-victory over the Sheldon Lady Panthers handed the Northeast Vernon County Lady Knights their first conference win of the season Friday night. In the nightcap of the boys-girls varsity hoops doubleheader at Sheldon High School, the Panthers edged the Knights in a thriller, 59-56.

A strong start had NEVC (2-5, 1-2 GVVC) in front 19-16 at the end of the first quarter, but the Knights trailed 34-28 at halftime. Sheldon then went up double-digits, grabbing a 51-41 lead heading into the fourth. The Knights stormed back, closing out the contest on a 15-8 run — before succumbing by three points.

Coming off a 30-point game the night before against Hume, NEVC 6-8 center Elijah Buttorff was held to a modest 18 point 7-rebound performance, while Knights freshman guard Justin Culbertson went off for a varsity career-high 18 points and 5 steals.

Sheldon (4-3, 1-0 GVVC) showcased a balanced scoring attack, spearheaded by Clayton Loyd, as the junior guard was one of three Panthers to finish in double-figure scoring with a team-high 16 points. In addition, Sheldon forward Jason Leavell dropped in 14 points and Brett O’ Connor, 11 — while senior point guard Zavery Lamb added 8.

“We played our best ball game tonight of the season,” said first-year NEVC head coach, Jenny Allard. “Although it was an extremely frustrating game at times, because we were in foul trouble for a majority of the contest, I was proud of the way we fought through that adversity.”

Allard said her club took a big step forward with a strong performance against the GVVC tournament champion Panthers.

“I know the boys are disappointed with the loss, but I feel like we took a huge step forward in our progress,” said the veteran head coach. “We’re getting smarter on the offensive end of the court by not committing as many turnovers and taking better shots within the offense. And defensively, we’re beginning to limit the number of shots (attempted) by our opponents — by rebounding more consistently and not allowing as many offensive rebounds. Now we need to make sure we continue to build on this performance and improve.”

Lady Knights vs. Lady Panthers

NEVC (4-3, 1-2 GVVC) trailed Sheldon 14-13 at the end of the opening frame, but then proceeded to outscore the Lady Panthers 17-7 in the second quarter, en route to a 30-21 halftime advantage. Sheldon (0-6, 0-1 GVVC) was unable to climb any closer in the second half. NEVC led 39-28 at the conclusion of the third, as the Lady Knights then outscored their hosts 18-15 in a high-scoring fourth quarter.

Respond to this story

Posting a comment requires free registration: