Redmen drop opener to Northmor
2-point third quarter was enough to give Northmor the win
- The Golden Knights forced 23 total turnovers on the evening.
- Carr led all Redmen scorers with 13 points and six rebounds
- Dick chipped in with 12 points while Keegan Sims dropped seven points and grabbed six boards
- Kegely grabbed 14 total rebounds, scored 13 points and swatted six shots
BUCYRUS – The Redmen fell ice cold.
The shooting woes brought about a 58-37 loss to Northmor on Saturday night at Alex Kish Memorial Gymnasium.
The Redmen came out hot and fed off sophomore Gram Dick’s six first quarter points to finish with a 10-8 lead. But the Redmen showed their youth and fell into a shooting slump that lasted from the 3-minute mark of the second until the four minute mark of the third.
“When we fall into a slump like that, especially with a young team, they lose their confidence really quick,” Bucyrus coach Tony Rose said. “It was hard for them to come back from that.”
Bucyrus grabbed a 24-23 lead with three minutes remaining in the first half. It was the last lead the Redmen would see. The Golden Knights finished the half on a 12-0 run and continued the second half to make it a 17-0 run before a pair of Clinton Carr free throws got the Redmen on the board.
The foul shots were the only points the Redmen scored in the quarter. By then, Bucyrus was in a 43-26 hole.
“I saw that score and we were in the bonus so I figured we could score with the clock stopped if we took it to the basket,” Rose said. “But I think my guys saw that score and with their youth thought the game was over.”
The Redmen connected on just two field goals in the second half.
“There are going to be some growing pains but we will fix the mistakes,” Rose said. “If we are making the same mistakes in Game 5, then there may be a problem.”
The Golden Knights defense found a new energy in the second half forcing 13 turnovers and creating easy baskets. They controlled the offensive glass thanks in big part to 6-foot-6 center Tyler Kegley.
“He had a monster game tonight,” Northmor coach Zach Ruth said. “He was mad when he didn’t get that jam in the third but we had him down for 10 offensive rebounds.”
The sophomore finished with 14 total rebounds and 13 points for the Golden Knights. He also swatted six shots. Senior Gunney Lilly shared team high honors with 13 points as well. Sophomores Brock Pletcher and Meechie Johnson each finished with 10 points.
The Golden Knights forced 23 total turnovers on the evening.
“We take a hustle stat and we showed the guys at the half and they got really excited because we were over our goal,” Ruth said. “They came out of the locker room and help Bucyrus to just a couple points in the third.”
Carr led all Redmen scorers with 13 points and six rebounds. Dick chipped in with 12 points while Keegan Sims dropped seven points and grabbed six boards. The Redmen shot 12 for 26 on the evening but was held to just three field goal attempts in the devastating third quarter.
The Redmen start the season 0-1 and will be back in action on Tuesday as they host Riverdale.
Northmor pick up their first season opening win in three years and will be back in action on Thursday when they host Mt. Gilead.
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Stat Book
Northmor 8-27-8-15 — 58
Bucyrus 10-14-2-11 — 37
Northmor: 18-38 FG, 10-14 FT, 4-16 3pt. (Pletcher 2, Lilly 1, Kegley 1) 25 rebounds (Kegely 14), 12 turnovers, 8 Assists (Johnson 3), Steals 12 (Johnson 4, Lilly 4) Blocks 8 (Kegely 6). Scoring: Lilly 4 4 13; Kegely 5 2 13; Pletcher 4 2 10; Johnson 4 2 10; Berg 3 0 6; Parrott 3 0 6.
Bucyrus: 11-20 FG, 12-17 FT, 1-6 3pt. (Sims 1) 17 rebounds (Sims 6, Carr 6), 23 turnovers, Assists 4 (Dick 3), Steals 5 (Dick 2). Scoring: Carr 2 9 13; Dick 6 0 12; Sims 2 2 7; Richardson 1 1 3; Lewis 1 0 2.