Cougs, Lancers win, Knights fall to LCC

DAVE MOSIER/independent sports

The Van Wert Cougars won their second game of the year — and first league game — with an ugly 56-39 victory over Kenton on Friday.

Van Wert got out to a quick start, outscoring the Wildcats 12-4 in the first quarter, but Kenton rallied in the second quarter, going on a 24-18 run to get within a basket, 30-28, at the half.

The Wildcats then lost their shooting touch in the third quarter, as the Cougars went on a 16-1 run to head into the final stanza up by 17 points, 46-29. Both teams scored 10 points in the final quarter.

Van Wert had two players in double figures, led by Colin Smith’s 17 points. Ryan McCracken added 10 points for the Cougars. Thomas Phillips led Kenton with 11 points, while Hunter Phillips and Jaron Sharp each had 9 points for the Wildcats.

Van Wert was 21 of 42 (50 percent) from the field, but made just 4 of 14 three-point attempts (28.6 percent). The Cougars were 10 of 13 (76.9 percent) from the three-throw line. Kenton was 13 of 42 from the field (31 percent), while making 3 of 6 from three-point range (50 percent). The Wildcats were 10 of 17 (58.8 percent) from the line.

Van Wert dominated on the boards, bringing down 32 rebounds to 23 for the Wildcats. The Cougars also had more turnovers, 23-17, in what was, at times, a wild game.

The Van Wert junior varsity team also won, 67-31, with the Cougars having three players in double figures, led by Drew Bagley’s 13 points. Blake Henry added 11 points, while Lawson Blackmore scored 10 for Van Wert. Kenton was led by Cobe Heydinger’s 15 points.

The Cougars will again be on the road tonight, as they make the long trek to Bryan to take on the Golden Bears in a non-conference match-up.

Crestview gave unbeaten Lima Central Catholic all it wanted, but couldn’t quite get over the hump, falling 71-58 to the state-ranked Thunderbirds on Friday at home.

LCC got off quickly, scoring 14 points to 8 for the Knights to lead by six at the end of the first stop. Crestview rallied in the second quarter, outscoring the T-Birds 18-15 to trail by three points, 29-26, at the half. LCC outscored the Knights in the second half, 42-32 to preserve the win, but there was still plenty of back-and-forth during the game.

Connor Lautzenheiser led Crestview with 27 points, while Javin Etzler added 11 points, and Wade Sheets scored 9 for the Knights. The T-Birds had four players in double figures, led by Tre Cobbs’ 28 points. Dantez Walton scored 16 points, while Nick Tafinger had 12 and Josh Dixon added 11 points for LCC.

Both teams shot the ball well from the field. Crestview was 23 of 44 (52 percent), while the T-Birds made 23 of 37 (62 percent) of their field goal attempts. Both teams were 7 of 12 (58 percent) from three-point range. The Knights were 5 of 6 from the free-throw line (83 percent), while LCC were 18 of 25 (72 percent) from the charity stripe.

Crestview had the edge in rebounding, 16-15, but also had more turnovers, 13-7, than the T-Birds.

The Lincolnview Lancers had little trouble with Columbus Grove, downing the Bulldogs by 14 points, 51-37, in a Northwest Conference game played Friday at Columbus Grove.

The Lancers struggled offensively at times in the game, but outscored ‘Grove in all four quarters, starting with a 16-13 advantage in the first quarter. Lincolnview led by seven at the half, 30-23, while taking an eight-point lead, 39-31, into the final stanza.

Chandler Adams led the Lancers with 24 points, while Trevor Neate added 9 points for Lincolnview. Columbus Grove was led by Gabe Stechschulte and Rece Roney, who both scored 12 points for the Bulldogs.