Triton Shocks No. 1 Blue River Valley
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
KOKOMO -ÊHeading into Saturday's Class A Kokomo Semistate, the unranked Trtion Trojans knew they had their work cut out for them against No. 1 Blue River Valley.
The 16-8 Trojans would have to play their best game of the year to upset the 21-2 Vikings. Looking to fit the Cinderella slipper like the Triton girls team, the Trojans pulled off the biggest upset of the day by defeating the Vikings 68-59.
"Our kids really came ready to play," Triton coach Joe Bennett said. "They were mentally ready to go and we executed up to the T."
The Triton faithful had a lot to cheer about in the semifinal win. Not many people in Memorial Gym were thinking this small team from Bourbon would upset the top ranked team, but the Trojans' determination was obvious. They wanted it badly.
"It was a great game," said Bennett. "Our fans are the best, it was just a great atmosphere to be in."
Blue River Valley got on the scoreboard first on a Philip Griffith jump shot to give the Vikings a 2-0 lead. Rob Salyer jump-started the Trojans with their first points to tie the score at two each.
The first quarter was a see-saw battle. Both teams traded baskets with the Trojans holding a slim 15-13 lead after one.
The Trojans shot the ball well in the first half, connecting on 16 of 22 shots.
"We really shot the ball well in the first half," Bennett said. "We have really struggled so it was a nice change."
Salyer got the Trojans going in the second, drilling a jumper to give Triton its biggest lead of the game at 17-13. The Trojans extended their lead to 21-15 on a Joey Potter layup with 5:28 to play.
The Trojans were making their run without their top scorer, Brandon Zeider. Zeider twisted his ankle and didn't return until late in the second quarter.
"We had other guys step up," said Bennett. "Brandon is such a competitor that he wanted to get back out there and battle."
Triton had its biggest lead of the half at 34-23 with 1:14 left. Zeider hit a jump shot that sent the Trojan faithful into a frenzy. The Trojans took a 34-25 halftime lead and sent a definite panic attack on the favored Vikings.
"We get everyone's A game," Blue River Valley coach Barry Huckeby said. "Triton dominated the game inside the paint and I give them a lot of credit. They play well."
Blue River Valley, who has gone 64-10 in the past three years, just couldn't quite figure out the Trojans on the offensive end.
"We really got it going in the first half, and that got our confidence up," said Bennett.
Triton kept pouring it on the Vikings in the third stanza. Zeider started the quarter with a long distance three to give the Trojans a 37-25 lead. The Trojans enjoyed their largest lead of the day, 48-30, thanks to a Potter layup with 3:28 to play in the quarter.
"They put a nice run together in the third and we couldn't dig ourselves out of that hole," said Huckeby.
As with every good team, everyone in the gym knew that the Vikings had at least two more runs in them. The Vikings went on a 7-0 run to end the third to cut the lead to 48-37.
"We kind of rushed some things, and I knew they would make a run at us," Bennett said.
The Trojans handled the pressure of a Viking comeback thanks in large part to guard Austin Unterbrink. Unterbrink came off the bench and directed the Trojan offense in a nice fashion. Unterbrink hit some key free throws in the fourth to secure the win.
"I thought Unterbrink gave us a lift," said Bennett.
Blue Rive Valley made its final run with 2:53 left when they cut the Triton lead to 56-51. The Trojans could have panicked, but they rode out the storm and defeated a very good team.
"Our kids responded well," said Bennett. "We knew this would be a tough game and we came out on top."
Potter led the Trojans with 15 points and six rebounds. Unterbrink added 14 points. Salyer chipped in 11 points and a team-high 10 boards while Zeider and Jim Read added 10 points each.
Kyle Cox and Nathan Schmidt paced the Vikings with 19 points.
This win was huge for Triton basketball. It set up a chance for the boys team to capture what the girls team celebrated, a Semistate Championship.
The win allowed Triton to move on to the final game where they faced Lafayette Central Catholic. Central Catholic defeated Southern Wells 81-65 in the opening game. [[In-content Ad]]
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KOKOMO -ÊHeading into Saturday's Class A Kokomo Semistate, the unranked Trtion Trojans knew they had their work cut out for them against No. 1 Blue River Valley.
The 16-8 Trojans would have to play their best game of the year to upset the 21-2 Vikings. Looking to fit the Cinderella slipper like the Triton girls team, the Trojans pulled off the biggest upset of the day by defeating the Vikings 68-59.
"Our kids really came ready to play," Triton coach Joe Bennett said. "They were mentally ready to go and we executed up to the T."
The Triton faithful had a lot to cheer about in the semifinal win. Not many people in Memorial Gym were thinking this small team from Bourbon would upset the top ranked team, but the Trojans' determination was obvious. They wanted it badly.
"It was a great game," said Bennett. "Our fans are the best, it was just a great atmosphere to be in."
Blue River Valley got on the scoreboard first on a Philip Griffith jump shot to give the Vikings a 2-0 lead. Rob Salyer jump-started the Trojans with their first points to tie the score at two each.
The first quarter was a see-saw battle. Both teams traded baskets with the Trojans holding a slim 15-13 lead after one.
The Trojans shot the ball well in the first half, connecting on 16 of 22 shots.
"We really shot the ball well in the first half," Bennett said. "We have really struggled so it was a nice change."
Salyer got the Trojans going in the second, drilling a jumper to give Triton its biggest lead of the game at 17-13. The Trojans extended their lead to 21-15 on a Joey Potter layup with 5:28 to play.
The Trojans were making their run without their top scorer, Brandon Zeider. Zeider twisted his ankle and didn't return until late in the second quarter.
"We had other guys step up," said Bennett. "Brandon is such a competitor that he wanted to get back out there and battle."
Triton had its biggest lead of the half at 34-23 with 1:14 left. Zeider hit a jump shot that sent the Trojan faithful into a frenzy. The Trojans took a 34-25 halftime lead and sent a definite panic attack on the favored Vikings.
"We get everyone's A game," Blue River Valley coach Barry Huckeby said. "Triton dominated the game inside the paint and I give them a lot of credit. They play well."
Blue River Valley, who has gone 64-10 in the past three years, just couldn't quite figure out the Trojans on the offensive end.
"We really got it going in the first half, and that got our confidence up," said Bennett.
Triton kept pouring it on the Vikings in the third stanza. Zeider started the quarter with a long distance three to give the Trojans a 37-25 lead. The Trojans enjoyed their largest lead of the day, 48-30, thanks to a Potter layup with 3:28 to play in the quarter.
"They put a nice run together in the third and we couldn't dig ourselves out of that hole," said Huckeby.
As with every good team, everyone in the gym knew that the Vikings had at least two more runs in them. The Vikings went on a 7-0 run to end the third to cut the lead to 48-37.
"We kind of rushed some things, and I knew they would make a run at us," Bennett said.
The Trojans handled the pressure of a Viking comeback thanks in large part to guard Austin Unterbrink. Unterbrink came off the bench and directed the Trojan offense in a nice fashion. Unterbrink hit some key free throws in the fourth to secure the win.
"I thought Unterbrink gave us a lift," said Bennett.
Blue Rive Valley made its final run with 2:53 left when they cut the Triton lead to 56-51. The Trojans could have panicked, but they rode out the storm and defeated a very good team.
"Our kids responded well," said Bennett. "We knew this would be a tough game and we came out on top."
Potter led the Trojans with 15 points and six rebounds. Unterbrink added 14 points. Salyer chipped in 11 points and a team-high 10 boards while Zeider and Jim Read added 10 points each.
Kyle Cox and Nathan Schmidt paced the Vikings with 19 points.
This win was huge for Triton basketball. It set up a chance for the boys team to capture what the girls team celebrated, a Semistate Championship.
The win allowed Triton to move on to the final game where they faced Lafayette Central Catholic. Central Catholic defeated Southern Wells 81-65 in the opening game. [[In-content Ad]]