The THS girls basketball team picked up a championship on Saturday night in the Hamilton Tournament as the Lady Bulldogs beat Gallatin, 52-43.
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The THS girls basketball team picked up a championship on Saturday night in the Hamilton Tournament as the Lady Bulldogs beat Gallatin, 52-43.
The THS boys had four chances in the final minute to win third place, but could not quite get past South Harrison as they fell, 44-42.
THS Girls
Things appear to be getting on track for the THS girls. The Lady Bulldogs picked up their third straight win by knocking off Gallatin for the second time this season.
“It is always fun to come together and win a championship,” Head Coach Kris Ockenfels said. “Chances to win championships don’t come along all that often so it is nice to take advantage and win one.”
THS outscored Gallatin 14-12 in the opening quarter of play and led heading into halftime, 27-21.
“Our defense has been excellent throughout the tournament,” Ockenfels said. “What we have done is avoided the big run by our opponents all tournament.”
Points were hard to come by for both teams in the third quarter. The Lady Bulldogs finished the period with a 36-28 lead.
“Even when we were not scoring, our defense came up with stops,” Ockenfels said. “That allowed us to maintain our six- to seven-point lead throughout the game. In this tournament we allowed only 36 points per game. That is some great defense.”
Trenton expanded its lead by one point in the fourth quarter and picked up both the tourney championship and its 10th win of the season. Ashten Witten earned tournament MVP honors and led the Lady Bulldog with 13 points.
“The play of Ashten and Trisha Ireland was key. They took care of the basketball and handled Gallatin’s pressure,” Ockenfels said. “I also thought the team did a nice job of getting to the free throw line. This season we have been very good from the free throw line, so getting to the free throw line is a big key for us.”
Kari Shifflett had 10 points and Aimee Gutshall added nine points for Trenton.
Trisha Sprague led Gallatin with 11 points.
The Lady Bulldogs are 10-7 and travel to Lawson tonight. The THS girls then come home to play Milan on Tuesday, which will be their fifth game in eight days.
THS Boys
The THS boys gave themselves every opportunity to win Saturday night’s third-place contest with South Harrison. The Bulldogs had four possessions in the final 45 seconds but came up empty in each. South Harrison missed free throws and had two turnovers during that same time span. Finally, the Bulldogs had one buzzer-beating shot that bounced around the rim and then fell out.
“Nobody likes a loss, and this was a heartbreaker, but I was so proud of the boys’ effort,” Head Coach Greg Buescher said. “This team has made so much progress since the first of the season. We are a basketball team now. Expect some great things from this team the rest of the way.”
South Harrison opened up a six-point lead by the end of the first quarter, 11-6. Trenton had cut that lead to three points by halftime, 20-17. The Bulldogs continued with their game plan in the third quarter and shaved another two points off South Harrison’s lead, 24-22.
“I thought this was our best game in terms of execution. We worked the ball around and found the shots that we wanted,” Buescher said. “Defensively, I am see us figuring things out. Early in the season, if a team found a weakness in our zone, there was not anything we could do about it. Now we have the ability to adjust and adapt to what is happening on the floor.”
Both teams scored 10 points in the fourth quarter and THS had four chances late. They first forced a South Harrison turnover, but then turned the ball right back over to South Harrison. On the inbound pass, THS came up with a quick foul that sent South Harrison to the free throw line with a one-and-one. South Harrison missed the first shot and THS grabbed the rebound. The Bulldogs then got a good look at the basket, but missed it. Another quick foul and a miss at the free throw line gave Trenton its third possession with 20-plus seconds remaining.
The Bulldogs then had a baseline drive that was cut short by a timeout. Trenton could then not get the ball inbounds in time.
“That inbounds was my fault. Instead of doing the same sidelines play that we have ran hundreds of times, I tried to exploit something South Harrison was doing,” Buescher said. “I outcoached myself. Looking back on it, knowing what I know now, I would have not tried to change things.”
That gave South Harrison the ball back and for the third time. But South Harrison missed the front end of the one-and-one, which set up a three-quarter court desperation shot by Derek Miller. The ball hit the back of the rim, then the front, and finally bounced harmlessly over the side of the rim and out.
Derek Thorne and Kyle Hoyt led Trenton with 12 points each. Logan Kadolph and Brad Madison each had 14 points for South Harrison.
“We have grown so much as a team. I would love the chance to play our first 10 games over because I know we would be so much better,” Buescher said. “We have a tough end to our season with LeBlond, Putnam County, Brookfield and Cameron, but I expect to see some great basketball.”
The Bulldogs fall to 6-11 and will host Milan on Tuesday.