|
|
Tri-Village
senior Damien Cook goes in for two of his 19 points Friday
as the Patriots rolled to a 75-53
Cross County Conference victory over
Miami East. With a 16-0 record, the Pats will travel to
Covington
Friday. CNO Photos by Dylan Knoop
|
|
And then there was only one
Patriots remain
undefeated
By George Starks
NEW MADISON- Heading into Friday’s Cross County Conference battle with
Miami East, one thing was certain.
Someone had to fall from the ranks.
Tri-Village started the night with a 15-0 mark while the Vikings were
sporting a 14-1 mark with the only loss coming to Versailles in the
championship game of the Holiday Tournament, 63-55.
The kicker being both teams were undefeated in the Cross County
Conference.
With both team being undefeated in the conference, it was the game for
the conference.
With everything to lose, Miami East was fighting a losing battle before
the first second had elapsed ofdf the game clock.
With 6-5 junior Damien Mackesy on the shelf for the next four weeks
with a broken hand, things weren’t looking good for the Vikings.
If that wasn’t enough to put a little damper on the Vikings parade, it
was homecoming at Tri-Village as well.
Led by senior Colton Linkous’ 26 and a 19 point effort from fellow
senior Damien Cook, Tri-Village got started quick and never let-up.
When the final horn sounded, the Patriots were still perfect on the
season, dropping a 75-53 loss on the Vikings.
Like the Lady Patriots, the guys are in the driver’s seat in the
conference, controlling their own destiny.
“It feels good,” said Pats coach Josh Sagester. “I thought our kids did
a nice job tonight on defense. It kinda set the tone. Obviously, we
made the shots in the first quarter that gave us a cushion. We played a
really good basketball team tonight and fortunately, we came out on
top.”
Playing at a level that only the best of the best could keep up with,
Tri-Village trailed only once in the opening frame when Conner Hellyer
drained a trey, giving East a 3-2 lead.
At that point, the Patriots defense took over and the offense clicked
to near perfection.
With the opening eight minutes in the books, the Patriots, off an 18-7
run, led 20-10.
“I thought we did a good job on defense, especially early,” said
Sagester. “Late, we struggled a little bit rebounding the basketball
but overall, in this environment and in this magnitude of a game, I
thought our kids performed pretty well.”
With the Vikings sitting in a zone to start the game, then going to a
triangle and two, the Patriots bombed from outside as Linkous nailed
four on the night with Tyler VanWinkle adding three of his own. Senior
Mason McCabe and junior Knox Morris had one each, giving the Patriots
nine treys on the night.
“Anytime you play a Miami East team, you’re going to have to make
perimeter shots,” Sagester stated. “They started out in a 1-2-2 the
triangle, we had enough guys out there making some shots for us. I
thought we did a nice job of moving the basketball and finding the open
man. I’m very proud of them tonight.”
If trailing by a 10 spot after one wasn’t bad enough for Miami East,
the Patriots defense turned up the heat in the season quarter, holding
the visitors to only four points to hold a 31-14 lead at the break.
At that point, the writing was on the wall as the Patriots rolled to a
53-28 lead heading into the final frame.
“I very pleased,” quipped Sagester. “They’ve worked very hard to get to
this moment and I’m very proud of the way they handled themselves.
Anytime you can be 16-0 it’s a good thing. There are a lot of teams in
Ohio who would like to be where we are right now”
The Patriots quest for perfection will continue Friday as Tri-Village
will travel to Covington.
(Writers note...As was reported by CNO on a game at Franklin Monroe
recently, Tri-Village graduate Mitch McCabe has been fighting a rare
form of cancer, Senopiol Sarcoma, a cancer that has produced a tumor
that has cocooned around his heart. It affects blood pressure and how
the heart flows the blood throughout the body.
As big as basketball is in Darke County, Some things are that much
bigger.
Friday, the people from Miami East presented McCabe with a check for
$1,366.00. Last Saturday, the fans from Winchester in conjunction with
various other fundraisers, added an additional $12,890.)
|
|
Mason McCabe and Raya Mikesell were crowned the king and queen for
Tri-Village's 2015 Homecoming.
|
|
Mitch McCabe was awarded a check from the Miami East contingency Friday
for $1,366.00 for the
Mission For Mitch fund. McCabe is battling a
tumorous cancer that has cocooned around his heart
cutting off blood
flow and affecting his blood pressure.
|
|
|
|
