Carey overtakes Bucyrus

CAREY - The final step to becoming a successful basketball team is learning how to win.

Bucyrus showed it has made strides as the season has progressed, despite having just one win to date.

At Carey on Friday night, the Redmen demonstrated they haven’t quite made that last step.

Bucyrus watched a 12-point fourth-quarter lead evaporate as the Blue Devils scored 21 points in the final period to overhaul the visitor, 59-56, in a Northern 10 Conference game.

“Box out and free throws,” Bucyrus coach Tony Rose said succinctly. “And understanding basketball. We lost the game. It makes you want to cry.”

Rose referred to a series that occurred after Carey (10-9, 8-6 N10) took the lead at 57-56 with 50 seconds left in the game. Cody Luzader hit the front end of a 1-and-1, but Abel LaRoche grabbed an offensive rebound off Luzader’s missed second attempt. LaRoche was fouled and missed both free throws, but got another rebound and another possession for the Blue Devils.

Bucyrus (1-18, 1-13) never got off another legitimate shot. Luzader hit one of two free throws to seal the win.

“Those were huge,” Carey coach Jamie Young said of LaRoche’s offensive boards. “The way things had been going for us, we weren’t getting many breaks.”

It was a crushing defeat for the Redmen, who led for much of the game. After trailing early in the first quarter by four points, Bucyrus rallied to take a 12-10 lead on a basket by Harley Robinson, before settling for a 14-14 tie by period’s end.

The Redmen then built leads of seven points twice in the second quarter behind six points from Gavin Lewis. Bucyrus took a 29-23 to the locker room at halftime.

“We’re getting there,” Rose said. “Since we haven’t been in close games all year, these kids have never faced that situation.”

The Blue Devils went on a 13-4 run to start the second half to take a 36-33 lead and appeared to have regained the momentum. But Bucyrus settled down to go on an 11-2 run to the end of the quarter to lead, 47-38, capped by a banked 3-point shot from Keith Smith at the buzzer.

“We didn’t come out with any energy and Bucyrus did,” Young said. “They took it to us for three quarters.”

When Keegan Sims hit a 3 from the left corner to start the scoring in the fourth quarter, the Redmen looked to be in the driver’s seat, sporting a 50-38 lead. But Carey refused to fold.

The Blue Devils went on a 13-1 run over a five-minute span to finally tie the game with 2:32 left on a pair of free throws from LaRoche.

Robinson nailed a 3 to give the Redmen a 54-51 advantage, but Brayden Wentling answered with a 3-point play to knot it at 54-54. Luzader hit a free throw to break a 56-56 tie, setting the stage for the fantastic finish.

“You find out at the varsity level that the man wins,” Rose said. “We have to get stronger and play through contact. That’s the part we have to learn.”

Smith and Clinton Carr each had 14 points to lead Bucyrus. Lewis added 10 and Smith grabbed 11 rebounds.

LaRoche had 18 points and eight rebounds for the Blue Devils. Bame finished with 10 points. Carey hit just two of 15 3-point attempts.

“The 3s weren’t falling tonight,” Young said. “We normally shoot those pretty well. We had to find a way to win. These close games are teaching us late-game situations.”

The Redmen were eight of 20 from the line.

“We missed free throws because we were tired,” Rose said. “We didn’t get our legs into them.

“Keith played well tonight and rebounded well,” he added. “Tonight, we played three quarters and six minutes.”

Carey also won the junior varsity game, 49-48, as a Bucyrus shot at the buzzer missed its mark.

Haden Johnston led the Redmen with 14 points. Easton Roark had 17 for the Blue Devils.

Twitter: @TF_Schmidt

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Stat Book

Bucyrus 14-15-18-9 — 56

Carey 14-9-15-21 — 59

Bucyrus FG 22-57, 8-20 FT, 4-15 3pt. (Keegan Simms 2, Keith Smith, Harley Robinson) 38 rebounds (Keith Smith 11), 12 turnovers. Scoring: Gram Dick 0 1-2 1, Keegan Simms 2 0 6, Keith Smith 6 1-3 14, Ryan Evans 2 0 4, Clinton Carr 6 2-6 14, Gavin Lewis 3 4-9 10, Harley Robinson 2 0 5, Kade Slagle 1 0 2.

Carey: 22-53 FG, 13-24 FT, 2-15 3pt. (Trey Bame 2) 38 rebounds (Abel LaRoche 8), 11 turnovers. Scoring: Abel LaRoche 8 2-5 18, Cody Luzader 1 5-8 7, Chris Stephan 3 0-1 6, Nathanyal Griffin 2 4-5 8, Brayden Wentling 2 2-3 6, Trey Bame 4 0 10, Hayden Russell 1 0 2, Gavin Woods 0 0-2 0, Derek Wentling 1 0 2. JV: Carey 49-48.