By RICHIE HALL
sports@readthereporter.com
FISHERS – They had to work for it, but the Fishers Tigers are Hoosier Crossroads Conference champions.
The Fishers boys basketball team clinched an outright HCC title Thursday night at the Tiger Den with an intense 51-49 victory over Westfield. Fishers is ranked No. 2 in Class 4A, while the Shamrocks are ranked No. 3, and a packed crowd came to see two of Indiana’s best battle it out.
“It was crazy, it was really loud,” said the Tigers’ Parker Perdue. The senior made the last big play of a game that featured many big plays, as Purdue grabbed a rebound with just a few seconds left to ensure Fishers would get the victory.
Perdue
“There was just five seconds left, so I just knew I had to go get it,” said Perdue. “Just bring it and hold on to it so we could win the game.”
The Tigers blasted through the first part of the contest, leaping out to a 15-4 advantage midway through the first quarter. JonAnthony Hall opened the game with a 3-pointer. Durante Morton scored two layins to get Westfield up by 4-3.
JonAnthony Hall scored seven points for Fishers, one of eight Tigers’ players
to score during the game. (Joshua Herd)
After that, it was all Tigers for the next few minutes, as they ran off 12 straight points. Keenan Garner scored seven of those points, with Taden Metzger adding five; his 3-pointer got Fishers ahead by double digits.
Trey Buchanan helped bring Westfield back in the last part of the quarter, scoring 10 points. The ‘Rocks were within 22-18 after one period, then Buchanan nailed a 3 to get them within one. Fishers used a jumper by Jason Gardner Jr. and another triple from Metzger to get up 30-23, but a 9-0 Shamrocks put them up 32-30.
“They’re such a great team,” said Fishers coach Garrett Winegar. “We knew they would make a run.”
Nic Book scored on a basket, Charles Farrell got a basket off a steal, and Drew Haffner drained a 3. Caleb Wise put Westfield on top, but Millen McCartney had the last word, as his 3 got the Tigers ahead 33-32 at the break.
Both teams played tough and fast on defense in the third quarter, which ended with the Shamrocks ahead 44-42. Book began the period with a layin, and Westfield never trailed in the quarter, getting up by four points on two different occasions.
Westfield’s Trey Buchanan scored 19 points. (Joshua Herd)
Buchanan opened the fourth quarter on a putback, and the Shamrocks led 46-42. But the Tigers allowed them only three points afterwards. Garner’s three-point play gave Fishers a 49-47 lead, then Buchanan answered that with a basket. But a layin by Cooper Zachary proved to be the game winner, and the Tigers were able to hold on.
Winegar said the key to that quarter was for Fishers to maintain its composure.
“Just keep doing what we do,” said Winegar. “Keep chipping away. Eventually we got a couple stops, and that was what we really needed, to get some stops.”
Garner scored 15 points, one of eight Tigers players to score during the game. Buchanan had 19 points and three 3s, while Book totaled 10 points.
Fishers is now 6-0 in HCC play. The Tigers have one more conference game (at Zionsville on Feb. 16), but all of the other HCC teams have at least two losses. Fishers is 17-1 overall and play Homewood-Flossmoor, Illinois’ No. 1 team at O’Fallon Ill. on Saturday.
The Shamrocks are 4-2 in the conference and 14-2 overall and host Harrison Tuesday.
FISHERS 51, WESTFIELD 49
Westfield FG FT TP PF
Trey Buchanan 7 2-2 19 0
Will Harvey 0 0-0 0 1
Caleb Wise 3 0-0 7 0
Nic Book 4 2-4 10 2
Durante Morton 3 0-0 6 4
Charles Farrell 2 0-0 4 1
Drew Haffner 1 0-0 3 0
Carsen Melvin 0 0-0 0 1
Totals 20 4-6 49 9
Westfield 3-pointers (5) Buchanan 3, Haffner, Wise.
Fishers FG FT TP PF
Taden Metzger 3 0-0 8 1
Millen McCartney 2 0-0 5 2
Cooper Zachary 2 0-0 5 2
JonAnthony Hall 2 2-2 7 1
Keegan Garner 6 1-1 15 2
Jason Gardner Jr. 2 0-0 4 1
Justin Kirby 2 0-0 5 0
Parker Perdue 1 0-0 2 1
Nathan Baker 0 0-0 0 1
Totals 20 3-3 51 11
Fishers 3-pointers (8) Metzger 2, Garner 2, McCartney, Zachary, Kirby, Hall.
Score by Quarters
Westfield 18 14 12 5 – 49
Fishers 22 11 9 9 – 51