By RICHARD TORRES
For The Reporter
NOBLESVILLE – The stage was set for a Noblesville Millers’ bounce back on Friday, Jan. 30. It also had the potential to become another setback.
Instead, senior Baron Walker and the Millers chose the former and halted their two-game losing streak by defeating Hoosier Crossroads Conference rival Hamilton Southeastern, 56-49.
Welcoming back senior Justin Curry II after the Valparaiso recruit missed five games with a knee injury, the Class 4A Millers (8-7, 2-3 HCC) were initially at full strength inside The Mill through the first few minutes.
Then, Curry “banged” his knee and was forced to sit, which limited him the rest of the way.
(ABOVE RIGHT) Hamilton Southeastern’s Varschon Clark scored eight points for the Royals. (Joshua Herd)
“I hate that for him. He’s been fighting this thing for six weeks, but our guys really hung tough,” Noblesville coach Scott McClelland said. “We had a great start. I thought that was really important.”
The Millers opened with an 8-1 run and led 20-7 after the first quarter with Curry II reentering for the final 2:20, as Noblesville caught fire, shooting 8 of 11 from the field and 4-for-5 from 3-point range.
All in the first eight minutes.
The 4A Royals (7-9, 2-3 HCC) turned the ball over five times in the frame and were held to two shot attempts. HSE tallied four of their seven points on 4 of 6 free-throw shooting.
The Millers, however, never let up.
Noblesville shot 52 percent from the field in the game and led by as many as 19 points in the first half with Walker, a Butler commit, posting a game-high 22 points, five assists and five rebounds.
“I think this is the most adversity I’ve faced in my four years. It’s not picture perfect, especially being a senior, but it’s just a matter of showing toughness,” Walker remarked on the team’s season struggles. “That’s what makes this squad so unique.”
The Millers opened the season 1-4 prior to winning five straight. In their past four games, the Millers went 1-3 with Curry sidelined, including a couple of near misses against 4A Pike in double overtime and against both HCC foes Franklin Central and Zionsville.
At home for their third consecutive HCC matchup in seven days, the Millers relied on past lessons to sharpen their fortitude.
“We’ve had games where we’ve been in control, particularly the past two games, and we’ve got lackadaisical. We’ve blown that lead, but this is just a testament to that adversity,” Walker said. “We knew they were coming in, losing two in a row. We were coming in, losing two in a row. We knew it was going to be a battle.”
Noblesville’s lead dropped to single digits in the second half, but team-wide consistency kept them ahead.
Senior Adam Fine had 12 points, five rebounds and buried 2 of 3 from behind the arc. Walker went 3-for-5 from deep, while senior Max Flanagan had eight points (2-for-5 from 3-point).
The Royals outscored the Millers through the final three quarters, but their early deficit eventually extended their losing streak to three.
Senior Luke Weemer had a team-high 21 points (2-for-4 from 3-point) with three rebounds and cut Noblesville’s advantage to 38-31 late in the third, but a Millers’ 10-3 run afterwards quelled any comeback hopes.
“That’s the thing we’ve struggled with, especially when we lose, is having inconsistent play for too long,” HSE coach Bobby Allen said. “We can’t always bounce back when those games are in this conference and against our schedule. You can’t have let downs that last that long where you can’t dig yourself out of a hole that deep.”
Senior Landon Osswald finished with six points, six assists and three rebounds. Senior Maverick Young had nine points and sophomore Varschon Clark added eight points.
Curry scored three points – off an and-1 in the second half.
“It was the same situation. He was back last week, and he got hurt in practice. It was early into practice and early into the game tonight,” Walker said. “We’ve been playing the past five games without him, so it was amazing just seeing him get back on the court. He was happy to get out there. Adversity. That’s what makes this group so unique.”