Young Panthers show poise in opener

UTICA - Visiting Licking Valley started and finished its season opener like a veteran team Thursday. But the youthful Panthers most assuredly are not.

Sophomore Chase Whisner and freshman Carson Conley were among four Panthers to hit 3-pointers opening the game, and Conley scrapped for nine second-half rebounds and had three fourth-quarter assists, as Valley rode its hot start to a 47-35 non-league win against Utica. The two will also play a Licking County League crossover game Dec. 21 at Valley.

"Carson is young and learning, but he's still a leader and people look up to him," said Tim Pethtel, who won his debut as Panthers' coach. "He can get us under control. He still has a lot of work to do, and so do we. Our motto is that we have to out-work everyone to give us a chance."

"There might have been some first-game jitters, but they (the younger players) still played great," said Cole Nethers, one of just three seniors on the roster. "My job is to calm the team down in stressful situations. When we get going too fast, we need to slow down and score points. We're quick, have some shooters and are still able to go inside."

After Utica's Brad Potes banked in a 3 to start the game from the top of the key, Whisner immediately responded with a 3 from the right wing. Then, Nethers, Conley and Caleb Hawkins all drilled 3s as Valley bolted ahead 16-5 and forced a timeout by Redskins' coach Brian Radabaugh with 2:36 still left in the first.

With Valley's press not allowing Utica to get into offensive rhythm, Whisner hit another 3 in the second and classmate Blake Nethers added another as the Panthers extended their lead to 27-11 and led 27-14 at the break. The Redskins got off just 11 first-half shots, making only 3.

Senior guard Chase Smith came off the bench to spark Utica, scoring three quick baskets at the end of the third and another early in the fourth as the Redskins pulled within 41-33 on a Smith assist to Potes for a layup. But Cole Nethers found classmate Paul Kirk for a layup and Conley hit both ends of a one-and-one with 1:43 left, pushing Valley safely ahead 45-33. He had five rebounds in the third quarter and four more in the fourth.

"I know how important rebounding is for me, and it's either there for me or not," Conley said. "Tonight was just one of those nights where it was. We're young, but we're a team full of leaders. The juniors and seniors keep the young guards like Chase and I composed, and we don't panic."

Whisner led Valley with 11 points, three assists and three steals. Nine players cracked the scorebook. "We can have anyone score on any given night," Pethtel said. "We knew Utica would make a run. It was just a matter of how we would stop it. They really fought." Potes led the Redskins with 12 points.

"We were down 16-5 in the blink of an eye," Radabaugh said. "We tried to slow it down, be patient and make a run, but it was just one of those nights. We were 2-of-13 on 3s and 11-of-19 at the line. I thought we competed well for the most part, but we just didn't shoot it well."

dweidig@newarkadvocate.com

740-328-8557

Twitter: @noz75

Stat Book

Valley 19-8-10-10 — 47

Team 8-6-14-7 — 35

Licking Valley: 18-38 FG, 5-11 FT, 6 3 pt. (Whisner 2, C. Nethers, B. Nethers, Conley, Hawkins), 28 Rebounds (Conley 10), 10 Assists (Whisner 3, Conley 3), 6 steals (Whisner 3), 15 Turnovers. Scoring: Whisner 4 1-2 11, C. Nethers 3 0-0 7, Conley 1 2-3 5, Kirk 3 0-0 6, Lopez 2 1-2 5, B. Nethers 1 0-0 3, Clark 1 0-2 2, Ellis 2 1-2 5, Hawkins 1 0-0 3.

Utica: 11-35 FG, 11-19 FT, 2 3 pt. (Potes, Cummins), 20 Rebounds (Woodard 4), 3 Assists, 3 Steals, 12 Turnovers. Scoring: Potes 4 3-6 12, Bodle 0 1-3 1, Cummins 1 5-8 8, Smith 4 0-0 8, Posey 1 2-2 4, Love 1 0-0 2.