Vikings Win Ugly Over Zebras
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
PLYMOUTH - Tippecanoe Valley and Rochester met last night in the game nobody wanted.
The players didn't want it.
Rochester threw the ball away 26 times. The Vikings never had any flow on offense. Want proof? Look at how many times they got to the free throw line. Six. They made two. They had 18 turnovers themselves.
After watching the two teams play, the coaches didn't want it, although Valley coach Gregg Sciarra grudgingly accepted his team's 59-41 win in the first round of the Plymouth Holiday Tounament.
"I don't think we came out with any emotion, any fire tonight," Rochester coach Scott Newcomb said. "We really didn't come out ready to play. Same ol', same ol'."
Newcomb has seen this before. With the loss, Rochester fell to 0-7. He's tired of it.
"I'm not sure how bad our kids really want it, you know?" Newcomb said.
Sciarra may have seen his team win by 18 on the scoreboard, but he was brushing up on his Bob Knight impersonation afterward.
"We set basketball back 10 years this game," he said.
Things like 11 turnovers the first half and six free throw attempts irked Sciarra. Watching an early 11-4 lead turn into an 11-10 lead two and a half minutes later irked Sciarra.
The Vikings led 14-10 after one quarter - and Rochester had 10 turnovers. Oh yeah, having a four-point lead when the other team gives you the ball 10 times probably irked Sciarra too.
"Our goal was eight for the game," Newcomb said. "They weren't even putting real good pressure on us, like they're capable of doing."
The Vikings, who entered the game with a 4-2 record, led winless Rochester 28-21 at halftime.
A 7-0 run at the end of the third quarter sent Valley its way to the win.
With 1:18 left in the quarter, Jeff Brown made a three-pointer to push Valley ahead 42-32. Nick Stutzman's basket with 37 seconds left made it 44-32. Brown's basket inside with three seconds left gave Valley the 46-32 lead entering the fourth.
The Vikings had their moments. Brown was his stellar self, scoring 20 on 8-of-12 shooting. When they needed a big bucket, they hit the trey, as Brown did in the third quarter. The Vikings made 7 of 16 three-pointers.
"Brown hurt us," Newcomb said. "We knew he would. We didn't match up with him very well."
The Zebras were their own worst enemy. They'd score a basket one time, throw the ball away the next. Add to 26 turnovers 6-of-16 shooting from the free throw line.
"A lackadaisical effort," Newcomb said. "A 60 percent effort. (Scoring) 41 points, you can't beat anybody."
Despite all of that, Rochester hung around, trailing 39-32 with 1:55 left in the third quarter.
"Rochester battled," Sciarra said. "They had a tough time handling the ball at times. Still, they were in the game.
"Mentally, they were more ready to play than we were."
Sciarra thought his team read too many Rochester press clippings.
"Sure," he said. "The biggest part was the mental part of the basketball game when you face a team who is 0-6. That's all the coaches talked about to the kids all week long. We're very disappointed they didn't come through with the mental part of the game.
"I think they might have learned a lesson, which will be helpful down the road."
Plymouth (7-1) beat John Glenn (3-5) 79-62 in the other first-round game. The win was No. 350 for Plymouth coach Jack Edison.
Valley got away with shooting six free throws against Rochester. Shooting six free throws against 7-1 Plymouth in its gym is a different story.
"No, (six free throws) won't cut it," Sciarra said. "The way we played tonight, we won't be in the game."
The Vikings were missing starting point guard Darren Parker. He has an ankle ligament problem, which Sciarra said he hurt in Valley's 66-55 win over Whitko on Dec. 13. He is probable for tonight's game.
Bryan Lenfestey started at point guard and dished out six assists to go along with six points.
"It gives us a depth problem," Sciarra said. "Lenfestey's a nice guard, and (Eric) Love can do some things. But we're one player short on our rotation."
Valley meets Plymouth at 8:15 tonight. Rochester and Glenn play in the 6:30 p.m. consolation game. [[In-content Ad]]
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PLYMOUTH - Tippecanoe Valley and Rochester met last night in the game nobody wanted.
The players didn't want it.
Rochester threw the ball away 26 times. The Vikings never had any flow on offense. Want proof? Look at how many times they got to the free throw line. Six. They made two. They had 18 turnovers themselves.
After watching the two teams play, the coaches didn't want it, although Valley coach Gregg Sciarra grudgingly accepted his team's 59-41 win in the first round of the Plymouth Holiday Tounament.
"I don't think we came out with any emotion, any fire tonight," Rochester coach Scott Newcomb said. "We really didn't come out ready to play. Same ol', same ol'."
Newcomb has seen this before. With the loss, Rochester fell to 0-7. He's tired of it.
"I'm not sure how bad our kids really want it, you know?" Newcomb said.
Sciarra may have seen his team win by 18 on the scoreboard, but he was brushing up on his Bob Knight impersonation afterward.
"We set basketball back 10 years this game," he said.
Things like 11 turnovers the first half and six free throw attempts irked Sciarra. Watching an early 11-4 lead turn into an 11-10 lead two and a half minutes later irked Sciarra.
The Vikings led 14-10 after one quarter - and Rochester had 10 turnovers. Oh yeah, having a four-point lead when the other team gives you the ball 10 times probably irked Sciarra too.
"Our goal was eight for the game," Newcomb said. "They weren't even putting real good pressure on us, like they're capable of doing."
The Vikings, who entered the game with a 4-2 record, led winless Rochester 28-21 at halftime.
A 7-0 run at the end of the third quarter sent Valley its way to the win.
With 1:18 left in the quarter, Jeff Brown made a three-pointer to push Valley ahead 42-32. Nick Stutzman's basket with 37 seconds left made it 44-32. Brown's basket inside with three seconds left gave Valley the 46-32 lead entering the fourth.
The Vikings had their moments. Brown was his stellar self, scoring 20 on 8-of-12 shooting. When they needed a big bucket, they hit the trey, as Brown did in the third quarter. The Vikings made 7 of 16 three-pointers.
"Brown hurt us," Newcomb said. "We knew he would. We didn't match up with him very well."
The Zebras were their own worst enemy. They'd score a basket one time, throw the ball away the next. Add to 26 turnovers 6-of-16 shooting from the free throw line.
"A lackadaisical effort," Newcomb said. "A 60 percent effort. (Scoring) 41 points, you can't beat anybody."
Despite all of that, Rochester hung around, trailing 39-32 with 1:55 left in the third quarter.
"Rochester battled," Sciarra said. "They had a tough time handling the ball at times. Still, they were in the game.
"Mentally, they were more ready to play than we were."
Sciarra thought his team read too many Rochester press clippings.
"Sure," he said. "The biggest part was the mental part of the basketball game when you face a team who is 0-6. That's all the coaches talked about to the kids all week long. We're very disappointed they didn't come through with the mental part of the game.
"I think they might have learned a lesson, which will be helpful down the road."
Plymouth (7-1) beat John Glenn (3-5) 79-62 in the other first-round game. The win was No. 350 for Plymouth coach Jack Edison.
Valley got away with shooting six free throws against Rochester. Shooting six free throws against 7-1 Plymouth in its gym is a different story.
"No, (six free throws) won't cut it," Sciarra said. "The way we played tonight, we won't be in the game."
The Vikings were missing starting point guard Darren Parker. He has an ankle ligament problem, which Sciarra said he hurt in Valley's 66-55 win over Whitko on Dec. 13. He is probable for tonight's game.
Bryan Lenfestey started at point guard and dished out six assists to go along with six points.
"It gives us a depth problem," Sciarra said. "Lenfestey's a nice guard, and (Eric) Love can do some things. But we're one player short on our rotation."
Valley meets Plymouth at 8:15 tonight. Rochester and Glenn play in the 6:30 p.m. consolation game. [[In-content Ad]]