Trojans win overtime thriller over Milton-Union
By George Starks

ARCANUM- If ever Arcanum coach Brian Gunter and the Trojans needed a shot in the arm, they got it Tuesday against Milton-Union.

Big buckets and clutch free throw shooting by junior Kory Baker in overtime, helped propel the Trojans to a 66-62 victory over the Bulldogs.

“This was a team effort and that was a good team we played tonight,” said Gunter after the game.

With the tone being set early, it was a game that was back and forth all night long with neither team ever taking command.

With four players in double figures in scoring and three in double figures in rebounds, it was two Bulldog seniors, Caleb Poland and Ben Stelzer, that proved to be a thorn in the sides of Arcanum.

Poland netted 24 in the game, including an uncontested 30 foot bomb at the end of regulation that tied things up and sent the game into overtime.

“We were up three at the end of the game and we had some miscommunication on a switch,” said Gunter. “We didn’t switch and never contested the shot and that tied things up. When we got in that huddle, every guy there believed we could do it. Tonight was ‘Believe in Us’ and we did.”

Stelzer dropped in 25 and was clutch for the Dogs down the stretch.

“This (M-U) is the fifth seed in our sectional and we knew going in that we had to contain Poland because he gets everyone involved,” admitted Gunter. “Stelzer is a great perimeter shooter and we knew we had to somehow slow them down.”

With multiple lead changes throughout the first half, Milton-Union led 16-13 at the first stop but it was all knotted up, 23-23, at the break.

Trailing the Dogs by a 37-35 count heading into the final frame, things looked bleak for Arcanum at the start of the final frame.

With 5:56 left in regulation, the Trojans were looking at a nine point deficit, 46-37, after Stelzer hit two triples.

That was enough to get the Trojans fired up as Connor Pohl dialed up two from downtown and once again, the Trojans were trailing by three and new life had been breathed into the home team.

“How about us coming back from being nine down,” said a smiling Gunter. “Connor Pohl hit some big three and some clutch foul shots when we needed them.”

In the overtime period, it was junior Kory Baker that stepped up to the plate.

In the extra four minutes, Baker accounted for two huge buckets and some clutch free throws that helped seas the deal for the Trojans. Baker finished the night with 12 big points.

“Kory Baker plays both sides of the ball,” said Gunter. “He makes good decisions on offense and plays solid defense. We put him on basically their best ball handler tonight and he played him hard.”

On the night, Pohl led the Trojans with 20 points and 12 rebounds while Habel backed him up with 16 points and 10 rebounds. In addition, senior Mason Garber dropped in 14 points and pulled down 14 boards along with Bakers dozen.

“We did a much better job when we needed to tonight,” said Gunter. “Our rebounding was solid tonight.”

Arcanum has three more games before the start of sectionals. The win over Milton-Union was more than just a win.

“This is huge because we’ve got senior night coming up Friday then we go to Preble Shawnee on Saturday and Covington next week. So we’ve got three left in four days,” said Gunter. “We just gotta dig in. When you beat the fifth seed in the sectional, no matter who you play, you’re going to have to suit it up. When you play hard and play as a team, good things happen.”