While defense once again ruled for Seymour’s boys basketball team during a rousing 49-29 victory over Scottsburg on Saturday night, it was the Owls’ third-quarter offensive outburst that garnered the loudest cheers from the home crowd.

After Scottsburg opened the second half by scoring six straight points to cut Seymour’s lead to 19-16, the Owls embarked on a game-breaking 18-1 run over the final six minutes of the third period.

Charlie Longmeier and Landon Fritsch each scored six points during the decisive stretch with Andrew Levine (four points) and Marcus Brooks (two) chipping in.

“Throughout the year, we’ve come out a little dull in the third quarter,” Levine said. “Coach pulled us aside and said we have to make this game different. That gave us a little extra push.”

Of the nine baskets during the rally, eight were layups. Five of the buckets were assisted, while another three resulted from steals caused by the Owls’ defensive pressure.

When the run was done, Seymour owned a 37-17 lead. The Owls increased their advantage to 43-20 early in the fourth quarter before settling for the final 20-point margin.

“That was a run fueled by defensive intensity, effort and passion,” Seymour head coach Kirk Manns said. “That’s how the game needs to be played. Our guys looked like a bunch of guys who love what they’re doing. I’m proud of them.”

Paired with a 36-26 win over Bedford North Lawrence on Friday, Saturday’s dominant victory gave Seymour its first weekend sweep of the season and improved the Owls’ overall record to 9-4.

“Two straight nights, we held teams under 30 points. That’s hard to do,” Manns said. “This is a good win. Scottsburg is a good team. Our guys deserve all the credit. We put the game plan together, but it means nothing if they don’t believe in what we’re doing and go out and execute it.”

Saturday’s 29 points were the fewest scored by a Scottsburg team since scoring 21 against Floyd Central in February 2017, a stretch of 122 games.

The Owls limited Scottsburg’s talented outside shooters to a 3-for-17 performance from 3-point range. On Friday, Seymour held Bedford to a similar 2-for-17 night from long range.

“Our goal is to make the offensive team uncomfortable so that when they finally get open and get a shot, they’re not in rhythm to take it,” Seymour senior Casey Regruth said. “That’s what we’ve been able to do the last couple of nights. We were able to force them to take shots out of rhythm.”

Regruth was the primary defender on Scottsburg’s leading scorer, Hayden Cutter, who was held to five points Saturday.

Seymour allowed the Warriors to score just 10 first-half points, their third straight game keeping opponents to 11 or fewer at halftime.

Offensively, the Owls finished with three double-figure scorers with Levine, Brooks and Eli Meyer each scoring 11 points.

Levine also grabbed a game-high eight rebounds and helped Seymour to a healthy 30-19 advantage on the boards. Regruth added seven rebounds for the Owls.

With Saturday’s victory, Seymour has won four of its last five games, a welcome turn after dropping consecutive games to Whiteland and New Albany in the final days of December.

“We were in a little bit of a lull, and I was wondering which way we were going to go,” Manns said. “This time of year, teams go up or they go down. It’s rare to stay the same. If this weekend is any indication, we’re headed in the right direction.”

All eyes now turn to next Friday’s clash with Floyd Central for a chance to claim at least a share of the Hoosier Hills Conference title. The Highlanders (10-2) occupy the top spot in the HHC standings with a 3-0 record. Seymour sits in second place with a 4-1 mark.

“They’re a good team,” Manns said. “They’ve got good players, and they’re well-coached. We’ll see what we do with this opportunity.”