By RICHIE HALL
Reporter Sports Editor
After a tight first quarter, Carmel took over its annual county rivalry game with Noblesville on Friday.
The Greyhounds used solid defense and hot shooting to beat the Millers 66-19 at the Eric Clark Activity Center. This marks the third consecutive win for Carmel, a nice little streak in the early part of the season.
Noblesville held the lead for most of the first period. Xavier Hines and Jordan Schmidt each made 3-pointers to give the Millers a 6-2 lead early.
The ‘Hounds began to get going towards the latter stages in the quarter, with Cole Jenkins scoring off a steal. Andrew Owens made two free throws to get Carmel within 8-6, then Luke Heady made a buzzer-beating ‘3’ to get the Greyhounds ahead 9-8.
“They hit the tough shots in the first quarter and I don’t think we were completely locked in,” said Carmel coach Ryan Osborn. “I’m not sure we were ready to play to start the game.”
The ‘Hounds took over the game in the second period, outscoring the Millers 19-3 to take a 28-11 halftime lead. Owens led the offense, draining three 3-pointers in that quarter alone on his way to 13 points. The other six points were scored by John Michael Mulloy, a 6-10 Butler commit.
“I thought in the second quarter we came out and we had some purpose defensively that helped us build our offense,” said Osborn.
The Greyhounds dominated the second half. Mulloy added nine more points, with Owens scoring another seven. He wound up the leading scorer, with 23 points, and made four of his five 3-point attempts.
Mulloy finished with 16 points. Both he and Owens led on the boards with seven rebounds each. Mulloy also handed out five assists. Heady finished the game with 10 points.
Schmidt made two 3-pointers, scoring six points for the Millers. Riley Vitales and Alex Hancock each grabbed four rebounds for Noblesville.
Both teams are back in action tonight. Carmel hosts Fishers for another all-county game, while the Millers travel to Anderson.
