CROTHERSVILLE
Trinity Lutheran outscored Crothersville 20-8 in the fourth quarter to break open a tight game and post a 64-47 win Friday night.
Cable Spall scored on a move to the basket in the closing seconds of the third period to make it a 44-39 score entering the fourth period before the Cougars came out hot for the last eight minutes.
Trinity went on a 10-1 run over the first three minutes of the fourth quarter, and that sealed the deal for the visitors.
“I’m expecting a game where we’re going to have to control the rebounds,” Trinity coach Ryan Crase said before the game. “We definitely want to win the rebound battle and push the tempo. I think they’re going to want to slow it down and play zone and make it a slow-paced game, so if we speed them up, it’s definitely in our favor. We need to spread the wealth and just move the ball around until we get a good shot.”
The strategy produced a winning combination, as Hudson Norton and Tyler Goecker each scored 15, Jack Marksberry hit 13, Mitchell Hackman 10 and Jacob Sabotin nine.
The Cougars got off to a good start on a rebound basket by Hackman at the 3:30 mark of the first period to put Trinity on top 9-7.
Spall then took over for the Tigers and scored six points the remainder of the quarter for a 13-10 lead.
The teams traded points in the second period with Quinten Keasler hitting a pair of 3-pointers and scoring eight for the Tigers, while Goecker scored six and Marksberry and Sabotin hit 3-pointers for a 26-24 lead for the Tigers at the half.
Crothersville coach Bobby Riley said his team had to control the tempo in order to have a chance to win.
“I think they’ll press,” he said. “We’ve seen a lot of it in the JV game, and I’m sure we’ll see it in the varsity game. For us, it’s all about the tempo of the game. We want to try to get the ball across half-court and try to set up the offense. I’d like to see the score in the 40s or 50s. If it’s in the 60s, we’re in trouble.”
Riley said turnovers and rebounds were going to be important to his team. He said the Tigers would have to keep their turnovers under 12, and they did by only committing eight, but they could not win the battle on the boards, as Trinity held a 37-21 advantage in that department.
Sabotin led Trinity with 12 rebounds, and Goecker had 10.
“For us to be successful, we need to be 10 turnovers or less. We’ve been playing better the last couple games, and it has been because we’ve kept our turnovers down,” Riley said. “Another thing is the huge size advantage they have. All their starters are 6-foot or better, which means if we don’t block out, we’ll be in trouble. We’ve struggled this year rebounding the ball. I’ve got Quinten Keasler at 6-5, but other than that, I don’t have much size.”
Kealser had one of his better offensive games of the season with 14 points, and he had five rebounds.
Spall led the Tigers in scoring with 24 points.
The Cougars (5-10) have won four of their last five, and Crase said, “I think we’re starting to put things together. It’s another sectional opponent tonight, and we’re just building to see where we’re at for March.”
The Tigers (2-10) will host Columbus Christian tonight, while the Cougars are off until Thursday when they travel to Franklin.
Box score
At Crothersville
Trinity Lutheran 64, Crothersville 47
Trinity Lutheran;10;14;20;20;—;64
Crothersville;13;13;13;8;—;47
Crothersville (2-10): Cable Spall 8 6-9 24, Jacob Moeller 2 0-0 5, Quinten Keasler 4 3-4 14, Zach Helt 0 1-2 1, Damian Bowman 1 0-0 3, Devin Morgan 0 0-0 0, Totals 15 10-15 47
Trinity Lutheran (5-10): Hudson Norton 5 5-5 15, Tyler Goecker 5 2-3 15, Jack Marskberry 4 3-3 13, Jacob Sabotin 4 0-0 9, Mitchell Hackman 4 0-0 10, Sage Broughton 0 2-4 2. Totals 18 12-15 64
3-point goals: TL (Hackman 2, Norton 2, Marksberry 2, Sabotin 2, Marksberry, Sabotin), C (Keasler 3, Spall 2, Bowman, Moeller)
Rebounds: TL 37 (Sabotin 12, Goecker 10) C 20 (Halt 6, Keasler 5)
Turnovers: TL 9, C 7
Fouls: TL 15, C 10
Junior varsity
Trinity 57, Crothersville 35
Trinity Lutheran: Kade Hill 9, Charlie Hackman 9, Evan Hunt 11, Caleb Williams 13, Levi Pottschmidt 2, Peyton Pollert 3, Kowan Gross 2, Levi Froedge 8
Crothersville: Morgan 4, Matt Clouse 16, Logan O’Sullivan 5, Bowman 7, Plasse 3