The Class 2A No. 9 University boys opened PAAC North play Saturday with a 59-42 win over Liberty Christian behind a career-high 26 points from junior Larry Pierce.
University, the three-time defending PAAC champions, never trailed in winning its 20th consecutive PAAC North game.
Pierce scored University’s first four points of the game and had seven in the first quarter as University led 13-8 after the first. The Trailblazers stretched their lead to as many as 15 (29-14) in the second quarter as Camden Brown had seven of his 14 points in the period. The Lions scored nine of the last 11 points of the period after Brown went to the bench with foul trouble as University held a 31-23 advantage at the break.
University’s defense in the first half was suffocating, holding the Lions’ Christian Nunn scoreless. The junior entered the game averaging 29.2 points per game, the fourth highest total in the state per MaxPreps.
“We had a great team effort defensively tonight,” said University coach Brandon Lafferman. “Camden and Larry made it tough for Nunn and House all night. Our guards did a good job keeping their guards uncomfortable.”
Nunn finished the game with 10 points, his lowest point output since the Blazers held him to nine points early last season.
Mitchell Martin scored on an offensive rebound early in the third quarter to restore a double-digit lead for the Blazers, and the Lions were never within single digits again. Martin was University’s leading rebounder with eight, getting five offensive rebounds. Pierce had six rebounds.
Pierce (seven) and Brown (five) had University’s other third-quarter points as the Blazers led 47-36 after three. Nunn had nine points for Liberty Christian in the third.
The fourth quarter was a defensive struggle with the team combining for just seven points in the first half of the period. The Blazers closed out the game at the foul line with Kasey Ash-Simpson making five of six free throws in the fourth. Ash-Simpson finished with nine points and drew praise from his coach.
“I was really proud of Kasey tonight and how he handled the ball and defended and especially knocking down key free throws in the fourth quarter,” said Lafferman.
Pierce and Martin each had four of University’s 14 assists.
“Our ball movement was really good and created some easy shots for our guys. Camden played very unselfish ball, passing out of a lot of double teams in the post and creating shots for others,” concluded Lafferman.
University is now 3-2 on the season and is next in action Friday night when they travel to Pendleton Heights.
University’s game at Seton Catholic on Dec. 21 has been postponed as the Cardinals have paused basketball activities.
UNIVERSITY 59, LIBERTY CHRISTIAN 42
University FG FT TP PF
Kasey Ash-Simpson 2-4 5-6 9 4
Nate Jeffrey 0-1 0-0 0 1
Kahmi Bracey 0-0 0-0 0 0
Sabien Cain 0-5 0-0 0 2
Matt Jones 1-4 0-0 2 1
Larry Pierce 8-16 7-9 26 2
Camden Brown 6-12 0-0 14 4
Seth Hogg 1-2 0-0 2 0
Mitchell Martin 2-5 2-3 6 3
Totals 20-49 14-18 59 17
Score by Quarters
LCHS 8 15 13 6 – 42
University 13 18 16 12 – 59
University 3-point shooting (5-22) Pierce 3-9, Brown 2-5, Cain 0-3, Jones 0-3, Hogg 0-1, Martin 0-1.
University rebounds (27) Martin 8, Pierce 6, Hogg 4, Cain 3, Brown 3, Jones 2, Bracey 1.
Westfield girls take care of Mavericks
Westfield finished up its week on a winning note, beating McCutcheon 72-62 Saturday at The Rock.
The Shamrocks got off to a good start, leading the Mavericks 22-13 after the first quarter. McCutcheon cut Westfield’s lead to 36-31 by halftime, but the ‘Rocks outscored the Mavericks in each of the next two quarters, including 20 points in the third.
Alyssa Crockett had a great game, scoring 24 points on 10-of-12 field-goal shooting, including four 3-pointers. Crockett also collected seven rebounds. Olivia Robey added 14 points, including a pair of 3s, and dished out six assists. Hailey Remaks and Gigi Eldredge both collected five rebounds.
Westfield is 4-3 and wraps up its four-game homestand on Tuesday, hosting Avon in a Hoosier Crossroads Conference game.
WESTFIELD 72, MCCUTCHEON 62
Westfield FG FT TP PF
Alyssa Crockett 10-12 0-0 24 4
Chesney Tebbe 1-4 6-9 9 3
Jessica Castor 3-7 0-0 7 2
Olivia Robey 5-8 2-2 14 3
Gigi Eldredge 4-5 1-2 9 3
Hailey Remaks 3-10 0-0 6 4
Ellie Kelleher 0-1 3-4 3 1
Madi Kerrigan 0-3 0-0 0 2
Jadeyn Hammes 0-1 0-0 0 2
Mikayla Rudolph 0-1 0-0 0 1
Totals 26-52 12-17 72 25
Score by Quarters
McCutcheon 13 18 18 13 – 62
Westfield 22 14 20 16 – 72
Westfield 3-point shooting (8-22) Crockett 4-5, Robey 2-5, Castor 1-4, Tebbe 1-2, Remaks 0-2, Kelleher 0-1, Hammes 0-1, Kerrigan 0-1, Rudolph 0-1.
Westfield rebounds (26) Crockett 7, Remaks 5, Eldredge 5, Tebbe 4, Castor 2, Robey 2, team 1.
‘Rocks boys dominate Wayne
Westfield stayed unbeaten by cruising past Fort Wayne Wayne 87-39 Saturday at The Rock.
The Shamrocks dominated the first quarter, leading the Generals 32-12 by the end of the period. Westfield outscored Wayne in each quarter, leading 57-21 at halftime and 71-25 after three periods, then adding 16 more points in the fourth.
Braden Smith led the way for the Shamrocks, scoring 27 points, handing out seven assists and making four steals. Cam Haffner contributed 16 points, while Nic Depasquale and Matthew Penley both scored nine points.
Westfield is 3-0 for the season and hosts Noblesville on Friday in a Hoosier Crossroads Conference game.
GC girls fall to Bruins
Guerin Catholic dropped a home game to Tri-West, 54-36 Saturday at the Eagles Nest.
The Bruins outscored the Golden Eagles in each quarter, leading 17-13 after the first period and 29-20 at halftime. Olivia Labus helped keep Guerin Catholic in the game, scoring 10 points in the first half.
But Tri-West continued to roll in the third quarter, taking a 42-27 lead by the end of the period. The Bruins were led by their long-range shooting, making 11 3-pointers.
Katie Koger was GC’s high scorer with 11 points, while Labus finished with 10 points.
Guerin Catholic is 4-3 and hosts Tipton on Thursday.
TRI-WEST 54, GUERIN CATHOLIC 36
Guerin Catholic FG FT TP PF
Aliyah Dorsey 1 1-1 3 2
Katie Koger 4 2-4 11 1
Kathryn Loso 1 1-2 3 2
Olivia Labus 5 0-0 10 1
Hannah Weitzel 2 0-0 5 0
Mia Thompson 1 0-0 2 0
Halley Buehler 1 0-0 2 0
Natalie Fernandez 0 0-0 0 0
Megan Cobb 0 0-0 0 1
Totals 15 4-7 36 7
Score by Quarters
Tri-West 17 12 13 12 – 54
Guerin Catholic 13 7 7 9 – 36
Guerin Catholic 3-pointers (2) Koger 1, Weitzel 1.
‘Hounds girls fall to Mount Notre Dame
The Carmel girls basketball team lost to Mount Notre Dame 57-28 in a Saturday away game.
Stats from the game were unavailable at press time.
The Class 4A No. 3 Greyhounds are 4-2. Carmel returns home on Friday ato play North Central in a Metropolitan Conference game.