By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BLOOMINGTON – The hands of fate ripped a streak-busting victory out of Bedford North Lawrence’s grasp. With a fortunate slap and a saving swat, and with the sure hands of a senior on the wheel of destiny, Bloomington South added another year to its grip on the rivalry.
So close, the Stars could sense the end of South’s two decades of dominance. Nothing would have been sweeter. But the tease turned to torment as the Panthers pulled away in the final five minutes, sending BNL home with more frustration.
With senior guard Jack Clark leaving his fingerprints on the deciding moments, South escaped with a 62-57 triumph on Friday night. Clark scored 18 points as the Panthers (2-1) extended their winning streak in the historic series to 21 straight. Will it ever end? Fantastic finishes have been rare during the South run, but this came down to two touches and two Clark punches that knocked the wind out of the Stars once again.
First touch. BNL owned a 52-49 lead when Vince Moutardier missed a baseline jumper. Cruz Sanchez, a former member of the BNL roster as a freshman, exploded from under the basket, reached back and slapped the rebound home. Ouch.
Second touch. The Stars trailed 60-57 in the final seconds. Patric Matson, who was sensational while scoring a game-high 24 points, faked his way free at the top of the key. But South sophomore Duncan Combs reached in and partially blocked the potential equalizer, then raced away to a clinching layup. Ouch again.
Those plays bookended Clark’s tough drive through traffic for a basket, followed by a steal that led to his breakaway for a 57-54 South lead. Taye Spears hit two free throws to give South a 59-54 advantage with 1:18 left, and that was just enough.
“For them to put us in the spot we were in, they made plays,” BNL coach Kurt Godlevske said. “We didn’t make a mistake, they just made plays. You can’t take that away from them.”
What made the fourth quarter even more gut wrenching was the BNL comeback to set that stage. The Stars trailed by 14 in the second quarter, by 9 at halftime, then closed the third quarter with an 11-3 blast to pull even at 47-47. Quincy Pickett popped a trey for a 50-49 lead, and Gibson Crane added a layup off a sharp Matson pass with 5:19 left. Then came the Sanchez tip that changed momentum.
“That was a huge tip,” South coach J.R. Holmes said. “That was a good play for us, a big play.
“It’s hard, once the other team gets the momentum, to get it back. You have to have someone make a strong play, not just a wild shot. When they got the lead, we did a really good job. Everyone was settling down, we were OK. Jack took over there.”
South threatened to bury BNL in the first half. Combs crashed home a slam on a fast break, Moutardier swished a wing trey, and Combs converted a post hook for a three-point play and South’s biggest lead at 30-16 with 3:43 left. Pickett popped two bombs and Logan Miracle muscled home a rebound for a three-point play to end the half and give BNL some late hope.
“We did lose the momentum,” Holmes said. “Everything was sort of going their way, and we had to fight it off.”
Matson sparked the BNL response. He stroked a trey from the key, then pulled up in transition for another bomb. Jacob Ritter splashed a corner jumper, and Miracle scored from close range in the paint to power the Stars to the 47-47 deadlock.
“To get back in it, we made plays,” Godlevske said. “We dug ourselves a hole, and basically had to play flawless in the second half, just to get back in it. We were the better team in the second half, so it’s frustrating we had to play like that in the first half and dig ourselves that hole.”
Matson hit five treys, added a thunderous slam after cutting through the lane in the first half, and earned high praise.
“He’s pretty good,” Holmes said. “He can drive it, post it, fade away, hit the threes. We knew that. At times we did a pretty good job chasing him, but when you lose him for just a second, it doesn’t take much for him to get a shot off.
“He has the green light from halfcourt on. Coach may give it to him on the other side, I don’t know. We didn’t pick him up quick enough.”
Miracle finished with a strong performance of 13 points and 9 boards, while Pickett totaled 11 points. BNL hit 10 treys, but also multiple shots in the fourth quarter that rimmed out during the late Clark surge.
“We had great looks with great shooters, the right people doing it,” Godlevske said. “Our decision making, in the second half, was so much better, at a high level. We were fun to watch in the second half.
“Logan played great. He was a presence. When he gives us someone to throw the ball to, it’s a very settling feeling for our kids.”
Moutardier added 13 points and Combs totaled 10 for the Panthers.
BNL will have no time to wallow in this aftermath, as the Stars will visit Brownsburg to battle the Bulldogs in their Sneakers for Santa Showcase event on Saturday afternoon.
BEDFORD NL STARS (57)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
5 Dax Short, f 1-2 1-5 1-2 1 1 4
22 Isaiah Sasser, f 0-0 0-1 0-0 2 4 0
31 Logan Miracle, c 0-0 4-7 5-6 9 4 13
10 Patric Matson, g 5-11 9-18 1-2 4 1 24
3 Quincy Pickett, g 3-7 4-9 0-0 3 4 11
12 Jacob Ritter 1-2 1-2 0-0 0 0 3
24 Gibson Crane 0-0 1-1 0-0 0 0 2
23 Tyler Stigall 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 0
Totals 10-21 20-43 7-10 20 14 57
BLOOMINGTON SOUTH PANTHERS (62)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
34 Vince Moutardier, f 3-6 5-12 0-0 2 2 13
33 Matt Tierney, f 0-0 2-3 0-0 2 1 4
20 Cruz Sanchez, g 0-1 2-3 0-0 5 4 4
10 Taye Spears, g 2-2 2-3 2-2 2 3 8
3 Jack Clark, g 1-1 4-5 9-11 2 1 18
23 Duncan Combs 0-2 4-6 2-3 3 1 10
2 Tucker Simpson 0-3 2-5 1-2 1 0 5
13 Rylan Stikeleather 0-0 0-1 0-0 0 1 0
Totals 6-15 21-38 14-18 20 13 62
Bedford NL 14 11 22 10 – 57
Bl. South 21 13 13 15 – 62
Turnovers – BNL 8, South 8
Field goal percentage – BNL 20-43 (.465); South 21-38 (.552)
Free throw percentage – BNL 7-10 (.700); South 14-18 (.778)
