Saturday, December 10th, 2011

St. Henry takes control in the second quarter

By Gary R. Rasberry
Photo by Mark Pummell/The Daily Standard

St. Henry's Nate Uhlenhake, right, brings the ball up the floor with St. Marys' Garet Fledderjohann defending during their nonconference contest on Friday night at Murotech Court. St. Henry defeated St. Marys 73-57.

ST. MARYS - An offensive burst in the second quarter and solid defense allowed the St. Henry Redskins to stay perfect on the season following a 73-57 win over the St. Marys Roughriders at Murotech Court in St. Marys.
The Redskins (2-0) took advantage of Roughriders' center J.D. Meyer picking up two early fouls in the first quarter. The Redskins pounded the ball in the post and Brad Stahl had seven of the Redskins' 18 first-quarter points and scored 11 points in the first half.
St. Henry took complete control of the game in second quarter. Mitch Davis came off the bench to hit a pair of three-pointers that helped the Redskins go up by 23 points (44-21) at halftime. The Redskins only turned the ball over twice in the first half compared to nine for the Roughriders.
"The guys understood what we were trying to do," said Redskins' coach Eric Rosenbeck. "With Meyer getting two fouls in the first quarter, I thought that was important. I noticed he had foul issues against Fort Recovery and New Knoxville, so we really wanted to get it in there (in the paint). Kyle stepped up his game and played well getting (Meyer) into foul trouble.
"I think Mitch and Steve (Luttmer) were huge," said Rosenbeck, referring to the two combining for 19 points off the bench. "Especially Mitch, because we had just missed two or three in a row. He comes out and rips two threes in a row."
"We didn't do a good job of attacking the 1-3-1 (defense) and we did not do a good job defending them," said Roughriders' coach Dan Hegemier. "They were two steps ahead of us in the first half. St. Henry's a nice team. They have a good idea of what what they want to do and they do it. We just have to get better."
The Redskins' lead got up to as much as 25 early in the third quarter but the Roughriders' (0-3) Garet Fledderjohann and Austin James began to heat up.
St. Henry helped St. Marys with some sloppy ball-handling. After just two turnovers in the first half, St. Henry committed six in the third and nine in the fourth quarter.
"It's a focus thing. It's every one, including myself," said Rosenbeck. "It happens in practice. We lose focus and we wonder why it happens in games. We need to clean that up right now. It's inexcusable."
"Kids didn't quit," said Hegemier. "We were down 44-21 and the kids could have quit. They didn't quit and kept going. We'll try to practice that hard next week and get ready for next weekend."
Stahl went 9-of-11 from the floor and finished with 19 points to go with 12 rebounds. Alex Post added 11 with Craig Knapke joining Davis with 11.
James was 4-of-8 from behind the three-point line and finished with 17 points, sharing team-high scoring honors with Fledderjohann. D.J. Manning had nine points with Meyer, who played most of the second half with four fouls, finishing with eight.
St. Henry is back home tonight to face Fort Loramie while St. Marys is off until next Friday when the Roughriders open Western Buckeye League play at Kenton.
Additional online story on this date
Area residents take extra precautions for home safety
Area residents appear to be locking up, lighting up and loading up as the incidence of burglaries steadily increases and authorities continue to investigate the apparent murders of two Fort Recovery-area residents. [More]
Subscriber and paid stories on this date
Auglaize County
WAPAKONETA - Auglaize County Commissioners will be making cuts as the preliminary 2012 budget shows expenses higher than incoming revenue.
Propose
More than 50 tips have been received by the Mercer County Sheriff's Office since two Fort Recovery-area residents were found bound and shot to death at their Burrville Road home Nov. 30.
NEW BREMEN - Familiar faces decorate a white Christmas tree at the Lockkeeper's House while red and blue ornaments and small American flags add a patriotic touch.
CELINA - A home on Echo Street is infested with cockroaches, and its owners have 30 days to improve its condition or possibly face a judge.
Mercer
Celina's point guard scores career-high 23 points in victory over Linden McKinley
CELINA - During Scott Moeder's first two years as Celina's starting point guard, his job was to run the Bulldogs' offense and set up teammates for scoring opportunities.
ROCKFORD - The Parkway boys' basketball team trailed by just one point late in the game, but Lima Temple Christian hit enough free throws down the stretch on Friday night to slip past the Panthers 55-51.
NEW BREMEN - The young Lima Central Catholic boys' basketball team was solid on defense and efficient on offense en route to a 66-40 victory over New Bremen on Friday night.
Local Roundup
Compiled by Gary R. Rasberry
Fort Recovery dominated the first three quarters and improved to 3-0 on the season after a 58-30 win over Delphos Jefferson on Friday night at Jefferson Middle School.