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| 3/6/2010 8:03:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article | Ada boys defeat USV for seventh straight sectional crown
By Cort Reynolds
Ada Herald Writer
KENTON - For the first 20 minutes of Friday's Div. IV boys basketball sectional final, underdog Upper Scioto Valley entertained hopes of an upset over arch-rival Ada. The Rams led by seven early and were tied 23-23 with the favored Bulldogs midway through the third period.
But then Ada reeled off unanswered runs of nine and eight points to more than double the Ram point total over the final 12 minutes and post a workmanlike 45-33 victory at Kenton.
The Bulldogs thus advanced to the district semifinals for the seventh consecutive season. They will face state-ranked Kalida (18-2) March 9 in the second semi at Elida. The victory improved the Bulldog record to 8-13 overall while USV finished 6-16.
After a slow start, Bulldog sophomore Konnor Baker netted a game-high 16 points, including 10 in the third period. But it was the offense of senior Matt McBride, competing gamely with a partially torn ACL, which kept Ada alive early.
McBride scored nine of his 13 points in the first half as the sluggish Bulldogs rallied from seven points down to grab a 19-17 advantage just before intermission.
"Matt was our best player tonight," said eighth-year Ada coach Chris Sautter. "He played well, all things considered with his knee. He played better defense, too.
"The game wasn't pretty but it doesn't have to be," he added. "It is just nice to get it done and get a win."
"We didn't expect McBride to do that," admitted USV coach Aaron Thompson. "He played really well for them. Ada played really physical and we didn't handle it. We made way too many turnovers.
Scrappy Ram guard Overs tied it 19-19 with a high banker off a backdoor pass to start half two. A lane jumper by Baker gave Ada the lead back yet Overs knotted it again on an 18-footer from the circle. Alex Weber then was sidelined with his fourth foul and things were starting to look potentially grim for the Bulldogs.
Yet Baker scored inside off a nice pass from McBride at the 4:11 mark. Overs tied it one last time 23-all on a running half-hook seconds later before Ada went on its decisive spree.
Baker started the run by nailing a 17-footer with 3:31 to go in the third period. The lanky soph then tallied inside on a post-up feed from Austin Weber 45 seconds later.
Next, Baker spun into the lane and bounced in a short shot for a six-point lead at the 1:33 mark. Senior Erik Grimslid banked in a pretty over-the-head reverse layup to prompt a Ram timeout with 1:10 left.
A foul shot by Austin Weber moments later built the lead to 32-23 before Colby Salyer converted a layup off a nice Overs pass just before the end of the quarter to pull the Rams within seven. Baker tallied the first 10 points of the period to propel Ada into the lead.
"We picked up our defense and were able to get some points in transition there," Sautter explained of the key splurge. "We wanted to score before 6-7 (Ryan Sparkman) got back on defense."
If USV had any notions of a rally, they were quickly quashed by an Ada 8-0 spurt to begin the final stanza. Two foul shots each by McBride, Austin Weber and Tyler Simmons and a leaning banker high off glass by Baker made it 40-25 with 5:50 remaining to all but put the game out of reach.
Bret Wodarski nailed a pull-up jumper for USV to stop the spurt. Alex Weber converted inside on a putback yet Salyer scored on a follow hoop of his own. McBride tallied on a power layup in the lane and Wodarski canned two foul shots to make the score 44-31 with 1:29 to go.
"In the second half we just couldn't put the ball in the hole," lamented Thompson. "We gave up too many offensive rebounds.
"But give Ada credit, their kids have been in a lot of big games in football and basketball," he added. "They overcame and persevered."
Ada looked flat and passive at the start, and the upset-minded Rams capitalized to lead early. Salyer banked in a 15-footer and Sparkman netted a follow shot for a 4-0 USV bulge. Salyer canned a 13-footer and Overs made a pull-up shot to lengthen the lead to 8-1 as Ada misfire don its first nine shots.
Junior guard Alex Weber finally scored the first Bulldog basket on a driving floater in the lane with 1:40 left in the first period. Yet Salyer tossed up a runner that rolled around the rim and in for USV's biggest cushion at 10-3.
"Colby started us out well and delivered before he got in early foul trouble," recalled Thompson.
McBride made a layup off a fine Austin Weber dish yet Ada missed four of its five foul shots in the quarter to go into the first break down 10-5.
"We started out well; the kids came out focused and we attacked," said Thompson.
The cold-shooting Bulldogs then changed the game's course by switching from a passive zone to a man defense. "We were not very active defensively," said Sautter of the switch. "We couldn't make make anything: free throws, shots in the paint or outside. Deuce (Austin Weber) gave us some energy off the bench."
Baker got the lid off the hoop by banking in a turnaround shot to begin the second stanza. A conventional three-point play inside by McBride tied it 10-10 6:56 before intermission.
Sparkman gave USV the lead back with two foul shots that stopped a 7-0 Ada run and a 3:30 Ram scoreless drought.
But McBride gave Ada its first lead 13-12 moments later on a pair of free throws at the 4:17 mark. The Rams regained the edge briefly on two charity stripers. Yet McBride made a steal and a gutty coast-to-coast drive capped by a left-handed layup to put Ada back in front, 15-13.
Ty Jolliff pushed the lead to 17-14 with a fast break layin off a nice Erik Grimslid feed. Rhys Rose pulled the Rams within 17-16 on a pair of foul shots and Wodarski tied it on a free toss 38.3 ticks before the break.
Baker gave Ada the lead for good when his shot bounced in to finish a determined spinning drive into the lane through several Ram defenders. All of the USV points in the second period came at the charity stripe as they canned seven of 10 tries.
"I thought we played tentatively in the first half," Sautter noted.
Salyer led USV with 10 points while Overs added nine. "Overs scraps, he has really stepped up for us after we had some personnel changes," Thompson noted.
Ada sank just 13 of 27 free throws (48 percent) while USV canned 11 of 14 (79 percent).
Both shooting-challenged clubs failed to make a three-point goal.
"These guys gave me a lot of work and made a lot of improvement this season, more than a lot of people thought we could," Thompson summed up. "We lose five seniors."
Despite missing approximately a dozen shots inside, the Bulldogs netted 16 field goals to just 11 by USV. After switching to a man defense, they limited the Rams to a mere 23 points and only six baskets over the final 24 minutes. It was the 10th win in a row for Ada over the rival Rams.
"We will have to play a lot better Tuesday against Kalida," Sautter admitted. "They took it to us in the first game (a 58-26 loss on January 4). We will have to play with more energy or we will be in for a long night. Hopefully we will make some shots."
The Wildcats beat Columbus Grove 53-37 Friday to advance from the Bluffton sectional and eliminate the Bulldogs (15-7).
Ada beat visiting Kalida in a regular season makeup game on Jan. 5, 2009, and both teams later advanced to the state final four. The Wildcats lost in overtime at the finals to Oak Hill, who beat the Bulldogs in the semifinals.
USV 33 (6-16)
Rose 0 4-4 4, Wodarski 1 4-6 6, Salyer 5 0-0 10, Overs 4 1-2 9, Sparkman 1 2-2 4, Shepherd 0, Pickford 0. Totals: 11/11-14/33. 3-pointers: none.
Ada 45 (8-13)
Grimslid 1 1-5 3, Simmons 0 2-2 2, Baker 8 0-4 16, Al. Weber 2 2-5 6, Jolliff 1 0-0 2, Au. Weber 0 3-4 3, McBride 4 5-7 13, Gibson 0, Simon 0, Budwit 0. Totals: 16/13-27/45. 3-pointers: none.
1 2 3 4 F
USV 10 7 8 8 33
Ada 5 14 13 13 45
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