Because of its mix of size, athleticism and experience, Doug Ogle describes Concord High School’s boys basketball team as unusual. The Minutemen definitely had the winning formula Friday night, as they pulled away in the fourth quarter and posted a 42-31 win over the host Warsaw Tigers. “Concord is an unusual high school team,” said Ogle, now in his 10th year at the helm of the Warsaw program. “They have a fair amount of size, athleticism and experience. They’re really good, and they proved it tonight.” In what was a close game through three-and-a-half quarters, senior Dylan Wynne hit a three-pointer with 4:14 remaining, pushing Concord’s advantage to 34-25. It was the only shot Wynne attempted the entire game. An up-and-under, circus-like layup from junior Jordan Stookey a minute later brought the Tigers within 34-29, but that’s as close as they got. “I thought Wynne’s three was the shot of the game,” said Concord coach Steve Austin, who notched the 396th win of his career. “We’re usually a pretty good three-point shooting team.” Friday, the Minutemen were just 3 of 13 from the arc, but they were able to improve to 11-1 overall and 4-0 in the Northern Lakes Conference by taking care of the ball and feeding the post. Concord committed just five turnovers, while the Tigers turned it over 11 times in what was a low-possession game. The Minutemen outscored Warsaw 18-3 in points off turnovers. “We had too many turnovers in the second half,” said Ogle, whose team fell to 8-6 overall and 2-2 in the NLC. “We don’t have a margin for error, and they do, that’s why they’re so good.” Concord, which led 8-7 after one quarter of play, 16-15 at halftime and 27-21 at the end of the third quarter, finished the game 16 of 33 (49 percent) from the field and 7 of 8 from the free throw line. Six-foot-6 senior and Ball State signee Franko House led the way with 13 points, while 6-5 sophomore Filip Serwatka added 12 points. Combined, House and Serwatka were 9 of 15 from the field and 6 of 7 from the charity stripe. The Tigers’ inside presence of 6-5 senior John Swanson and 6-2 senior Taylor Cone wasn’t nearly as effective, finishing a combined 4 of 10 from the field for eight points. “Their interior defense is very good,” Ogle said of the Minutemen. “They blocked probably four or five shots in the basket area that were really good blocks. Between House and Serwatka, they have size and athleticism, and they used it.” House blocked four shots, while Serwatka had one, as did Ramon Johnson. Not only was Concord’s interior defense solid, so was its second-half defense on Warsaw senior Jared Bloom. Bloom scored 10 of Warsaw’s 15 points in the first half. He scored just two points in the second half. “He was supposed to be our focus in the first half,” Austin said of Bloom. “We wanted to be close to him at all times. We totally lost site of him a couple times. He had eight points on three of our missed assignments.” With 12 points, Bloom was the only Warsaw player in double figures. Stookey finished with seven points, while Cone and sophomore Rashaan Jackson scored six and four, respectively. Swanson rounded out the Tigers’ scoring with two points. “We’re not going to win the conference now,” said Ogle. “Our focus now is getting ready for the sectional.” With Goshen’s 55-47 win over NorthWood Friday night, Concord is now the only team undefeated in NLC action. NorthWood and Goshen are both 3-1, while Plymouth and Warsaw are both 2-2, Elkhart Memorial is 1-2, Northridge is 0-3 and Wawasee is 0-4. Northridge and Memorial are scheduled to square off tonight at North Side Gym. The Tigers are in action again Friday when they host NorthWood.
CONCORD 42, WARSAW 31 Con 8 8 11 15 – 42 War 7 8 6 10 – 31 Concord – Ramon Johnson 2-8 1-1 5, Dylan Wynn 1-1 0-0 3, Adam Glanders 2-4 0-0 4, DuWhan Alford 2-4 0-0 5, Franko House 4-7 4-4 13, Dakota Simon 0-1 0-0 0, Filip Serwatka 5-8 2-3 12. Totals 16-33 7-8 42. Warsaw – Jared Bloom 5-8 1-1 12, John Swanson 1-3 0-0 2, Trae Furnivall 0-0 0-0 0, Nate Pearl 0-1 0-0 0, Jason Ferguson 0-1 0-0 0, Taylor Cone 3-7 0-0 6, Jordan Stookey 3-5 0-0 7, Rashaan Jackson 2-4 0-0 4. Totals 14-29 1-1 31. Three-pointers – Concord 3 (Wynne, Alford, House), Warsaw 2 (Bloom, Stookey); Rebounds – Concord 14 (Johnson 3, House 3, Serwatka 3), Warsaw 19 (Cone 5, Stookey 5); Turnovers – Concord 5, Warsaw 11; Fouls – Concord 9, Warsaw 13; Fouled out – none; Records: Concord 11-1 (4-0 NLC), Warsaw 8-6 (2-2 NLC) JV – Warsaw 28, Concord 26 Warsaw – Cody Freeman 6, Jake Mangas 6, Jonny Hollar 5, Peyton Long 4, Nick Sands 3, Cameron Hoskins 2, John Lacheta 2
