TERRE HAUTE — Terre Haute South’s “dangerous little team” as coach Mike Saylor referred to his boys high school basketball team earlier this week proved to be just that Friday as the Braves knocked off Class 4A No. 1 Lawrence North in the South gym by a 50-44 score.
Saylor employed a five-guard lineup during several stretches against a Lawrence North lineup that includes 6-foot-9 Louisville recruits Dominique Ferguson and Stephan Van Treese.
But the Braves forced the Wildcats into a jump-shooting team, holding them to 38-percent shooting from the field and holding them off the offensive glass just enough to pull out the win.
South made 11 for 22 beyond the 3-point arc, and LN made 5 for 15.
“Our basic strategy was to make them play against a thick team defense every time … no breakaway layups,” South coach Mike Saylor said. “We wanted it to be a 3-point contest, and that’s basically what it was.”
LN wasn’t as patient offensively as it needed to be, settling for outside shots over South’s packed in 2-3 zone, coach Jack Keefer said.
“You really couldn’t get it inside, they had five people in there. We just had to hit some jump shots. We didn’t hit any jump shots,” Keefer said. “We shot too quick, and I think we shot 43 percent from the free-throw line. They’re much farther along in their development than we are. I like my team, I think we’ll be a good team, but we’re not where we need to be yet.”
On the offensive end, Indiana State recruit Jake Odum pierced the Wildcats’ zone with penetration, patiently picking his spots to start South’s strong ball movement. The result was 11-for-22 shooting behind the 3-point arc for the Braves.
Odum was verbally dared to shoot several times by the athletic swingman Ferguson; the intelligent point guard wasn’t biting.
“My plan before the game was to get a couple 3s in early. But I never had a chance to get up toward the line; I don’t have that stroke like [John Michael] Jarvis does,” said Odum, who dished out a game-high eight assists.
But it was more than Jarvis, who made just 1 of his first five from deep before finding his stroke in the second half. Anthony McGill hit five 3-pointers, and Ian McIntyre hit two clutch triples in the fourth quarter.
“We wanted good shot selection, and the kids stuck to that plan,” Saylor said. “They obviously believe in a lot of different guys out there. McIntrye stepped up, and McGill played calm out there.”
The game was close throughout, with South pulling within one to close the first quarter on a running 3-pointer from the top of the key by sophomore guard Anthony McGill that banked off the glass. McGill banked in another to open the second-half scoring. He finished with five triples to tie for game-high honors with 15 points.
“It feels good to get a big win at home in front of a big crowd, especially against a so-called No. 1-ranked team,” McGill said. “We passed the ball well, took open shots … we were calm.”
Jarvis drilled his second 3-pointer of the second half with 3:33 left in the third quarter to give South a six-point lead, but 6-7 guard Justin Martin answered with a 3 and Van Treese scored one of his three inside baskets to make it 29-28.
McGill’s baseline 3 set up by Odum gave South some breathing room again. Odum then blocked Van Treese inside, but Ferguson recovered the loose rebound, converting with a chance for a 3-point play. But he missed the free throw — the junior was 3 for 8 at the free-throw line — and Van Treese missed a fadeaway putback attempt at the buzzer.
McGill opened the fourth quarter with a 3, and Ian McIntyre hit his first of two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to give the Braves their largest lead of the game.
Lawrence North guard Alanzo Bass connected on a 3 to make it 38-36.
South’s lead came in serious jeopardy when Odum was whistled for an intentional foul in a game that had its share of many hard but clean plays on the ball. Odum said his was no different.
“I told the ref I felt like that was soft,” Odum said. “[Ferguson] is 6-9, I’m going up there and I’m not going to let him finish the basket. I’m going to go out and play as hard as I can. I felt like it was the same play on the other end.
Ferguson hit the two foul shots to make it a one-point game, but South came up with the stop on the defensive end. McIntyre continued his clutch play, sinking both ends of a one-and-one at the free-throw line, and senior Adam Austin came up with the defensive rebound in a crowd at the other end.
“It’s the best feeling I’ve ever had in sports period,” said Austin, who said the Braves had confidence after losing just 52-51 at Lawrence North last season. “We’ve wanted to beat them forever. Last year was just a taste. I had a feeling, but me and my dad were talking. We’ve got some power, we’ve got some skill, we’ve got some guys that can play ball.”
Odum hit two free throws, and Van Treese followed with an air ball on a 17-footer. But Jarvis missed the front end of a one-and one, and Martin gave the Wildcats’ hope with a 3-pointer.
Odum then hit 1 of 2 on a double-bonus trip to the line, Ferguson missed a 3 and Odum made three more free throws to secure the victory.
The victory is believed to be South’s first against a top-ranked team since beating Calbert Cheaney and Evansville Harrison in 1989. The Braves also defeated Damon Bailey and Bedford North Lawrence earlier in that 1988-89 season.
“We proved it last year that we were one of the best teams in the state, and we also believe that this year,” Odum said.
“We felt like we ended the season ranked seventh last year, and we felt a little disrespected when the rankings came out this year,” Saylor said. “We’ve still got the same special guards, and maybe they’ll remember us next week.”
Lawrence North 44
Player fg 3pt ft r s pf tp
Van Treese 3-5 0-0 3-5 11 0 4 9
Bass 3-6 3-4 0-0 1 1 4 9
Taylor 0-4 0-2 0-0 4 1 0 0
Ferguson 6-10 0-1 3-8 5 2 2 15
Martin 3-11 2-7 0-0 1 0 1 8
Smith 1-5 0-1 0-0 2 0 1 2
Robinson 0-1 0-0 1-2 2 0 1 1
Ashley 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 2 0
Totals 16-42 5-15 7-15 28 5 15 44
Terre Haute South 50
Player fg 3pt ft r s pf tp
Odum 2-6 0-0 9-12 8 3 4 13
Jarvis 5-10 4-9 0-1 2 1 3 14
Austin 0-0 0-0 0-0 4 1 0 0
Worrell 0-1 0-1 0-0 1 1 2 0
McGill 5-8 5-6 0-0 1 0 0 15
McIntyre 2-8 2-6 2-2 3 0 1 8
Tanoos 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 0 3 0
Totals 14-28 11-22 11-15 21 6 13 50
Lawrence North 11 9 10 14 — 44
Terre Haute South 10 10 12 18 — 50
FG Pct. — LN .380, THS .500. 3-pt FG Pct. — LN .333, THS .500. FT Pct. — LN .466, THS .733. Turnovers — LN 13, THS 10. (*) Includes team rebounds — LN 2, THS 1.
JV — Lawrence North 38 (Radford 9), Terre Haute South (Jermaine Smith 16).
Next — Terre Haute South (2-0, 1-0 Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference) plays today against Mooresville at home. Lawrence North (2-1, 0-1 MIC) plays
High School
South boys basketball upsets 4A No. 1 Lawrence North 50-44
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