By RICHIE HALL
The Sheridan boys basketball team played its home opener on Friday night, and it was an exciting victory for the Blackhawks.
Sheridan beat old rival Clinton Central 50-43. The ‘Hawks dominated through the first three quarters, then held off the Bulldogs as they made a big comeback in the fourth period. This also marked a victory for Sheridan in its first Hoosier Heartland Conference game of the season.
“We did what we wanted to do, and that’s go 1-0 on the night for the varsity game,” said Sheridan coach Chris Schrank. “JV did the same over there. It may not have been the prettiest, but we’ll take a win at the end of the night.”
Trailing 4-2 in the first quarter, the Blackhawks made their first big run of the game by scoring nine straight points. Caleb Duke had five points in the run, including the game’s first 3-pointer.
The Bulldogs bounced back with a 10-0 run, giving them a 14-11 lead early in the second quarter. But Sheridan answered that one with a 13-0 run. Duke contributed eight points, with Drake Delph nailing a 3, and Jesse Kolb rolling a basket in. Kolb would have the half’s last score, a layin to give the ‘Hawks a 26-16 lead.
Sheridan continued to cruise in the third quarter, which opened with a three-point play from Delph. The Blackhawks led 39-23 after three, and a layin by Kolb at the start of the fourth gave Sheridan its largest lead of the game at 41-23.
Clinton Central came roaring back after that, going on an 18-3 run to get within 44-41. Drew Hosteter hit a 3-pointer, then Spencer Smith poured in 15 points: A three-point play followed by four 3-point baskets.
Duke stopped the run with a free throw, then Nick Burnell made a putback to get the lead back up to 47-41. Two free throws by Nate Martin cut the lead to 47-43, but Duke made 3-of-4 foul shots in a 10-second span to clinch the game.
“I think it’s good for these guys to learn to have to play through a little bit of adversity,” said Schrank. “Somebody makes a run at you, can you handle that and not fold? And we’ve had that a couple times. Our first game was that way. It was sloppy, they made a little bit of a run, cut it to five or six, but we finished the way that we needed to. So hopefully, that’s something that in the long run is going to pay off.”
Duke finished the game with 19 points, with Kolb scoring 13 and Delph 10. Burnell grabbed eight rebounds, with Delph collecting six and Kolb getting five.
Sheridan is now 3-0 for the season and plays at 7:30 p.m. tonight at Tipton.
Sheridan 50, Clinton Central 43
Sheridan FG FT TP PF
Drake Delph 4-12 1-1 10 0
Walker Casler 2-7 0-2 4 1
Caleb Duke 7-12 4-6 19 1
Nick Burnell 2-4 0-0 4 2
Jesse Kolb 6-6 1-3 13 2
Kyle Eden 0-1 0-0 0 2
Nick Roberts 0-0 0-0 0 0
Nolan Buckner 0-2 0-0 0 1
Totals 21-44 6-12 50 9
Score by Quarters
Clinton Central 6 10 7 20 – 43
Sheridan 11 15 13 11 – 50
Sheridan 3-point shooting (2-10) Delph 1-3, Duke 1-3, Casler 0-3, Buckner 0-1.
Sheridan rebounds (25) Burnell 8, Delph 6, Kolb 5, Casler 3, Duke 2, Roberts 1.
Sheridan’s Caleb Duke takes a 3-point shot during the Blackhawks’ boys game with Clinton Central on Friday. (Kirk Green)
Sheridan graduate Chuck Godby returned to Hobbs Hall on Friday as the public address announcer for the Blackhawks’ boys basketball games. (Kirk Green)