A lethargic, five-point third quarter doomed Seymour’s boys basketball team in a dispiriting 56-42 loss to Shelbyville Tuesday night.
Though outplayed in the first half, the Owls trailed by just three points at halftime. Instead of taking advantage of its good fortune, however, Seymour opened the second half with a five-minute scoreless drought that allowed Shelbyville to build an insurmountable 34-20 lead.
“You have to be ready every day, every night,” a disappointed Seymour coach Kirk Manns said. “We just didn’t have it tonight. I thought we would play with more energy and more purpose. Give all the credit to Shelbyville. They played with energy.”
The loss opened the final week of the regular season on a depressing note for a Seymour team looking to go two games over .500 for the first time in three years. Instead, the Owls’ record drops to 10-10 with Class 3A No. 2 Silver Creek coming to town Friday for the final game before sectional play.
Shelbyville signaled early that it meant business, knocking down seven first-half 3-pointers. All but two of the Golden Bears’ 23 first-half points came from long range.
“That gave them momentum and confidence,” Manns said. “And it carried over into the second half. We didn’t make any adjustments, we didn’t get out and guard. That’s on us. That’s disappointing.”
All nine of the Bears’ first-quarter points came on 3-pointers. After Oliver Sandman hit a two-point jump shot to start the second quarter, Shelbyville’s next 12 points came on long shots.
After knocking down another 3-pointer to start the second half, Shelbyville pounded Seymour around the basket, scoring on three straight layups. The Bears used the foul line thereafter, making 13 of their 17 foul shots to secure the victory.
In all, eight Shelbyville players scored, with seven scoring at least five points. Hunter Hounshell led the visitors with 14 points, including four 3s, while Jakob Heaton came off the bench to score 10 points.
Shelbyville’s Matthew Bunton grabbed a game-high eight rebounds to lead his team to a 29-28 advantage on the boards.
Landon Fritsch led Seymour with 17 points, giving him six consecutive games in double figures.
Andrew Levine came off the bench and gave the Owls their best overall effort. The junior finished with 7 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists.