By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – American novelist Thomas Wolfe penned the famous phrase “You can’t go home again.” The deeper meaning infers time changes things. Several people wearing Bloomington South colors proved that wrong.
For legendary South coach J.R. Holmes, who grew up in Lawrence County, it was a short trip back to familiar territory. For South starters Vince Moutardier and Cruz Sanchez, it was a Homecoming to the school where they started. The thing that hasn’t changed? The Panthers conquered Bedford North Lawrence – again.
With Moutardier hitting key shots during the final three minutes, with Sanchez directing the attack, with Holmes winning another to make his late father proud, South extended its winning streak in this ancient series with a 43-36 triumph over the Stars on Friday night. For those keeping track, that’s 20 consecutive victories. Moutardier scored 18 points and South (2-1) held BNL scoreless for the final 3:35 as Holmes moved his state record for career wins closer to a plateau no one in Indiana history has ever reached (and might never again) with his 898th in 54 seasons.
The Stars (1-1) had their opportunity to end their frustration against this purple nemesis. They owned a halftime lead despite 12 turnovers during that span, and they were within 37-36 late in the fourth quarter after a Patric Matson baseline jumper. That would be the final BNL highlight.
Moutardier, who played one game for the Stars as a freshman before transferring, buried a corner trey for a 40-36 lead at 2:25, then dropped a 15-footer with 55 seconds left. That definitely sweetened his return to BNL Fieldhouse. Holmes might not have liked the selection of the last shot, but loved the result.
“It was a big game for him and Sanchez to come back,” Holmes said. “Cruz played his butt off. I really liked the way he played. For me, for my dad, it’s a big game.“
For the Stars, it was a big chance that was squandered. BNL powered to a four-point lead at two different points in the second quarter and settled for a 19-18 advantage when it ended, in large part because of the turnovers. When the Panthers opened the third quarter with a 13-3 run, BNL never got back in front.
There were moments of hope. Trace Rynders swished a corner bomb to cut the South lead to 33-32 with 5:03 left. Matson drilled a beautiful fadeaway on the baseline for 35-34, and he rose in traffic for a 15–footer to create the 37-36 difference.
“When we got to the last four minutes, I told Zach (Sims) ‘He does not score another basket. You’re not switching, stay right on him,’” Holmes said. “And he didn’t score.”
That was the other main BNL problem. Only three scored. Matson was terrific with 17 points, Noah Godlevske hit three treys en route to 14, and Rynders added 5. In fact, only one other player even took a shot. That was it. And it wasn’t enough.
“You have to give them credit,” BNL coach Kurt Godlevske said. “They defended hard, made things difficult on us all night, even to get any kind of easy look. The bottom line is we have to find ways for the other kids to help us in scoring. They have to want the ball and want to score.
“That was my big concern coming into the season. When someone is disciplined and physical, switches as much as they do to take actions away, you have to finds ways to get guys the ball in the right spots. We didn’t get enough paint touches to do that.”
South stayed close in the first half because of a Sanchez 3-point play and a late-second 3-pointer by reserve Andrew Elsesser. Moutardier made his impact in the second half with 12 points.
“I was very disappointed in our offense at halftime,” Holmes said. “We didn’t run a play, we got our heads down. If it wasn’t for our defense, that kept us in the game.”
Matson was 8 of 13 from the floor and added 5 rebounds, although the Stars got thumped 22-13 on the glass.
“Patric played extremely well and got us some good buckets,” Godlevske said. “Defensively we were fantastic. We made Vince take tough shots and make tough shots. The kids played hard and scraped.”
Time has changed a few things. Holmes can’t crack the floor with his trademark sideline foot stomp, thanks to recent knee replacements. But for the last 20 years, his Panthers have stomped on BNL’s heart. It’s a streak that defies all odds, when looking at the 30-year history of the rivalry before this streak started. Back then, no one would have believed a prediction of 20 straight South wins. Yet here we are.
“No chance,” Holmes said. “But the thing about that is, I’m the only one who’s been there for all 20. I guess, as a superstition, we never talk about it – until after the game. That’s just amazing to me. You could have won a lot of money in Vegas for those odds. No one would have done that. Nobody would have taken 100-to-1 odds.”
BNL must now recover quickly for a road trip to Class 3A No.3 Scottsburg on Saturday night. The Warriors (3-0) whacked Charlestown 59-23 on Friday night.
BLOOMINGTON SOUTH PANTHERS (43)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
14 Zach Sims, f 0-0 2-3 1-1 2 2 5
34 Vince Moutardier, f 2-4 8-16 0-0 3 2 18
4 Alex Shaevitz, f 0-0 2-5 1-2 7 2 5
10 Taye Spears, g 0-0 1-3 2-4 4 3 4
20 Cruz Sanchez, g 0-0 1-3 3-3 5 2 5
3 Jack Clark 0-1 1-3 1-1 0 3 3
12 Andrew Elsesser 1-1 1-1 0-0 1 1 3
21 Malakai Goodman 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
15 Josh Clark 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
33 Matt Tierney 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Totals 3-6 16-34 8-11 22 15 43
BEDFORD NL STARS (36)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
10 Patric Matson, f 1-2 8-13 0-0 5 1 17
31 Logan Miracle, f 0-0 0-0 0-0 3 4 0
11 Noah Godlevske, g 3-10 4-11 3-4 2 2 14
1 Trace Rynders, g 1-3 2-7 0-0 3 4 5
12 Maddox Ray, g 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 2 0
22 Isaiah Sasser 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 3 0
3 Quincy Pickett 0-2 0-3 0-2 0 0 0
5 Dax Short 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 2 0
Totals 5-17 14-34 3-6 13 18 36
Bl. South 8 10 13 12 – 43
Bedford NL 9 10 7 10 – 36
Turnovers – South 13, BNL 16
Field goal percentage – South 16-34 (.471); BNL 14-34 (.412)
Free throw percentage – South 8-11 (.727); BNL 3-6 (.500)
