By RICHIE HALL
WESTFIELD – A solid defensive effort gave the Westfield boys basketball team a victory over a county rival on Friday.
The Shamrocks beat Guerin Catholic 53-40 at CSI Gymnasium. Westfield never trailed in the game, but the Golden Eagles played the ‘Rocks close in the first half before Westfield was able to slowly pull away in the second half.
“We knew this was going to be a really tough game,” said Shamrocks coach Shane Sumpter. “Guerin’s got a very good team, very good program.”
Guerin Catholic’s Jake Grissom led the Golden Eagles with 15 points. (Richie Hall)
The score was tied early at 4-4 before Westfield bolted ahead 13-7. Will Harvey drained a 3-pointer to start the run, then Drew Haffner got four points on a pair of baskets. Durante Morton also scored; he was just getting warmed up.
The ‘Rocks led 13-9 after the first quarter, but the Golden Eagles worked their way back to tie the game. Hayden Rogers began the second period with a 3, then a Bryson Cardinal free throw and Ryne Paris layin knotted the game at 15-15.
But Harvey broke that tie with another triple, and a putback made the score 20-15. That would be the margin at halftime, and Jalen Malone started the second half with a layin for the Shamrocks.
The third quarter belonged to Haffner and Morton. Haffner scored seven points, and his 3-pointer gave Westfield a 33-21 lead. Morton drove to the basket well, making three layins for six points.
The Shamrocks led 35-27 after three quarters. Sumpter said the difference was “us getting a little bit of a cushion there in the third quarter. We were able to get a 12- or 13-point lead, and then they came right back. I don’t think that score’s indicative of how hard-fought and close that basketball game was. We had to grind the entire way.”
Morton poured in eight points in the fourth period, including a pair of free throws that gave Westfield its largest lead of the game, 45-31 with 3:36 left.
“What a warrior, just a great big heart that he’s got,” said Sumpter. “We know what we got from Durante. He’s a three-year starter for us.” The coach highlighted Morton’s energy, effort and leadership, calling him “really valuable to our basketball team.”
Morton led the Westfield parade with 18 points, followed by Haffner with 13 and Harvey with 12. Morton and Brock Detamore each collected six rebounds.
Grissom scored 15 points for Guerin Catholic, with Paris adding 13 points. Cardinal pulled eight rebounds.
“I thought we had plenty of opportunities tonight,” said GC coach Bobby Allen. “We didn’t shoot the ball well. We struggled finishing. I don’t think it was because of a lack of effort from our guys. I thought we played extremely hard, thought we tried to compete.
“Our youth and inexperience showed a little bit tonight, but that’s okay. The great thing about it is that we get to bounce back and play another game tomorrow.”
Westfield is 3-1 and hosts Noblesville next Friday in a Hoosier Crossroads Conference game. The Golden Eagles are 4-1, dropping their first game of the season. They play Yorktown at 8 p.m. tonight as part of the Muncie Fieldhouse Classic.
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