INDIANAPOLIS — The Mt. Vernon Marauders proved, once again, they’re a tough out for any opponent.
Down 26-25 at halftime to host Class 3A Brebeuf Jesuit on Friday night, the 4A Marauders tied the game in the second half and then took control late to win 61-57 over the Braves.
Brebeuf Jesuit (9-8) came into Friday riding a three-game winning streak, but the Marauders halted the Braves’ run to secure their second straight victory. Mt. Vernon has now won five of their last six games, dating back to Jan. 26.
“I’m very happy with our play tonight. We had very balanced scoring with four in double figures,” Mt. Vernon head coach Ben Rhoades remarked.
“We did a good job of protecting the basketball the entire game and went 6-for-6 on free throws down the stretch. It was a very physical game and I’m proud of our guys matching their intensity throughout.”
Razhaun Wells led the Marauders’ double-digit quartet with 17 points and converted three of the team’s 16 free-throw attempts, including two in the fourth quarter.
Cooper Galli had 11 points, matching Wells by finishing 3 of 4 from the foul line. Armon Jarrard and Amhad Jarrard both posted 10 points apiece.
Armon Jarrard scored eight of his points in the final 16 minutes with six in the decisive fourth quarter. Amhad buried a clutch 3-pointer in the fourth to go with a pair of free throws.
The Marauders went 9-for-10 from the charity stripe in the second half and 13 of 16 overall.
A 19-point third quarter by Mt. Vernon tied the game at 44-all before it out scored Brebeuf Jesuit 17-13 in the final eight minutes.
Avery Williams Jr., Drew Walker and Cole Herman each had two points for the Marauders. Eli Bridenthal had Mt. Vernon’s second 3-pointer and sank both of his free throws in the third quarter to add seven points total.
Brebeuf Jesuit’s Evan Altman had a game-high 18 points, followed by Austin Ezell’s 15 and Billy Smith’s 10. Alex Gothard had eight points.
The Marauders improved to 13-4 on the season and host 3A Beech Grove on Tuesday before facing Hoosier Heritage Conference rival New Palestine on Friday, Feb. 19 on the road.
Mt. Vernon currently leads the HHC with a 5-0 record.
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G-C Cougars tame Wildcats in overtime
The Greenfield-Central Cougars watched their early lead slip away, but they weren’t leaving host Franklin County without a win.
Tied 47-all after regulation, the Class 4A Cougars held strong in the bonus period, defeating the 3A Wildcats 56-53 on Friday night.
The win improved Greenfield-Central’s season record to 11-8 and snaps a two-game losing streak.
Gavin Robertson put the finishing touch on the win, converting two free throws in a 1-and-1 situation during the final 11.7 seconds.
Dylan Moles buried a pair of free throws with 29.1 seconds to go in another 1-and-1 scenario to give Greenfield-Central a 54-51 lead.
The Cougars struck first in overtime, pulling ahead 49-47 and led 52-49 before sealing the victory from the charity stripe.
Moles scored a team-high 18 points with four 3-pointers while shooting 2-for-2 from the free-throw line.
Adam Lester finished with 12 points and a pair of 3-pointers. Robertson and Joey Roland both added eight points each. Rashawn Street had six points.
Greenfield-Central travels to 3A Western Boone tonight to complete its back-to-back weekend road trip. The Cougars return home on Saturday, Feb. 20 against 4A Martinsville.
Dragons sink Golden Bears
The New Palestine Dragons had one shot, and that’s all Blaine Nunnally needed on Friday night.
Down 61-60 to Hoosier Heritage Conference foe Shelbyville in the final seconds of regulation, the Dragons charged back to win 62-61 on the road behind Nunnally’s game-winning 15-footer with five seconds left.
The Dragons rallied back from a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit to improve their season record to 12-6. They are now 4-2 in the HHC behind Delta (11-4, 5-1 HHC) and Mt. Vernon (13-4, 5-0 HHC).
The win was New Palestine’s third in four games. Nunnally finished with 18 points behind Steele Brasfield’s team-high 22.
CJ Oliver had seven points. Matthew Brown added six, while Ian Stephens chipped in four. Damon Hockett had three points. Eli Stephens contributed two points.
The Dragons trailed 19-18 after the first quarter and faced a 34-28 deficit at halftime. Shelbyville’s lead grew to 53-41 entering the fourth quarter before Brasfield and Nunnally led the comeback.
A Brasfield 3-pointer brought the Dragons within two points, 55-53, with 2:51 left on the clock. New Palestine tied the game 55-all and stayed close 59-58 with 45.2 seconds remaining behind an Oliver 3-pointer.
Nunnally scored a layup with 16.4 seconds left in fourth to make it 61-60 before he buried the Golden Bears (5-11, 3-3 HHC) in the clutch.
