The Noblesville boys basketball team placed third in its annual Holiday Invitational, which finished up Wednesday at The Mill.
In their first game, the Millers took on Class 4A No. 7-ranked Chesterton, falling 67-57. The Trojans got up early, leading 18-9 after the first quarter. Noblesville was able to match Chesterton in the other three periods, but the Trojans maintained their lead.
“Other than the first quarter, we played them even,” said Millers coach Scott McClelland. “Just dug a little bit of a hole in the first quarter against a really good team.”
Noblesville had good balance against Chesterton, something that would be a factor later that night. E.J. Smith scored 14 points, including seven in the third quarter. Preston Roberts added 13 points. Aaron Fine scored nine.
The Millers played Crown Point in the third-place game, and were winners by the score of 57-50. The Bulldogs also got on top in the first half, leading 13-9 after one quarter and 32-23 at halftime.
But Noblesville’s defense took over in the third quarter, allowing Crown Point only three points. The Millers, meanwhile, scored 16 points. Cooper Bean had five, including a 3-pointer, and Aaron Fine added four points.
When the dust settled, the Millers led 39-35 after three periods. Noblesville added another 18 points in the fourth quarter, with five points from Smith. The Millers also took care of business from the free-throw line, making 6-of-7 foul shots.
“They had to make some plays and make some shots down the stretch,” said McClelland.
Four Noblesville players reached double figures. Fine led the way with 15 points, followed by Smith with 13, Roberts with 12 and Bean with 11.
“We just got to continue to grow and realize situations and circumstances and I think if we can do that, we got a chance to get better,” said McClelland.
Noblesville is 4-4 and plays Tuesday at Pike.
CHESTERTON 64, NOBLESVILLE 54
Noblesville FG FT TP PF
E.J. Smith 5 3-3 14 2
Aaron Fine 3 2-3 9 3
Cooper Bean 3 0-0 8 3
Preston Roberts 5 2-2 13 2
Cameron Karns 1 0-0 2 4
Hunter Walston 3 1-2 8 3
Luke Wilson 0 0-0 0 0
Luke Etchison 0 0-0 0 0
Nolan Decker 0 0-0 0 0
Evan Wright 0 0-0 0 1
Totals 20 8-10 54 18
Score by Quarters
Chesterton 18 18 14 14 – 64
Noblesville 9 16 14 15 – 54
Noblesville 3-pointers (6) Bean 2, Smith 1, Fine 1, Roberts, Walston 1.
NOBLESVILLE 57, CROWN POINT 50
Noblesville FG FT TP PF
E.J. Smith 4 5-6 13 3
Aaron Fine 5 3-3 15 1
Cooper Bean 4 2-2 11 4
Hunter Walston 0 0-0 0 5
Cameron Karns 3 0-0 6 1
Preston Roberts 4 4-5 12 0
Luke Wilson 0 0-0 0 0
Totals 20 14-16 57 14
Score by Quarters
Crown Point 13 19 3 15 – 50
Noblesville 9 14 16 18 – 57
Noblesville 3-pointers (3) Fine 2, Bean 1.