AKRON - Though not the most size-imposing player on the court, Nick Kindig continues to come up big for Tippecanoe Valley's varsity boys basketball team. Fresh off a 29-point performance at Knox Friday, the 5-foot-11 junior guard poured in 30 points, pulled down nine rebounds and made three steals Tuesday night, as the host Vikings beat the Lakeland Christian Academy Cougars 61-34. "Nick has been scoring well," said Valley coach Bill Patrick, whose team improved to 2-1. "His knee is still bothering him a bit, but he's playing well. He's a really good shooter. We need some other guys to step up, though, and take some pressure off Nick." Kindig, who had surgery prior to the season, was 11 of 16 from the field overall, 2 of 4 from three-point range, and 6 of 7 at the free throw line. "He's a good player," LCA coach Lee Compson said of Kindig. "We didn't defend him as well as I would have liked. He took us off the dribble more than I expected." Known for his sweet shooting touch and NBA-like range, Kindig made a living driving to the hoop against the Cougars, who fell to 0-2 on the season. Kinding and sophomore Tanner Andrews combined to score 22 of Valley's 29 first half-points. Andrews finished the game with 12 points, eight of which he scored in the first quarter as the Vikings raced out to a 16-0 lead. Freshman Chainey Zolman came off the bench to score seven points for Valley. The Vikings led 18-7 after one quarter of play, 29-15 at halftime and 47-23 by the end of the third quarter. Valley shot 53 percent from the field and outrebounded the Cougars 33-21. Despite the 27-point loss, Compson said he was proud of the way his team played after the early 16-0 deficit. "I don't know if it was us not ready to play, but I felt like we made some of the same mistakes we did in our loss to Lakewood Park Christian," said Compson, whose team will being playing in an IHSAA sectional next season. "We got down early, but I was proud of the way we played after that. We relaxed, and we did some things. We made some improvements from our first game." After Valley's spurt to open the game, the Cougars responded by scoring the game's next seven points. LCA, however, got no closer than nine points the rest of the game. "I thought LCA was much-improved from their first game," Patrick said of the Cougars. "Their kids played hard." Junior Collin Price led the Cougars with 12 points, while classmate Calvin Prinsen and senior John Rohrs added eight and seven points, respectively. The Vikings are in action again Saturday when they host Glenn, while LCA plays at at South Bend Trinity Saturday.
T. VALLEY 61, LAKELAND CHR. 34 LCA 7 8 8 11 – 34 TV 18 11 18 14 – 61 LCA - Teddy Harvey 0-2 0-0 0, John Rohrs 3-6 0-0 7, Sam Harris 0-1 0-0 0, Zarek Finley 0-1 0-0 0, Collin Price 5-13 1-2 12, Chris Silveus 0-2 0-2 0, Josh Silveus 1-3 1-2 3, Logan Pitts 0-0 0-0 0, Billy Pitts 0-1 0-0 0, Calvin Prinsen 4-8 0-0 8, Logan Mount 2-2 0-2 4. Totals 15-39 2-8 34. TV – Alex Thacker 0-2 0-0 0, Robby Groom 0-1 0-0 0, Chainey Zolman 3-5 0-0 7, Tanner Andrews 6-11 0-4 12, Jacob Ritchey 0-1 1-2 1, James Gregory 1-3 0-0 2, Nick Kindig 11-16 6-7 30, Dylan Stimeling 0-0 0-0 0, Logan Britton 1-3 0-1 2, Derrick Cunningham 1-2 0-0 2, Nate Morrison 1-1 1-1 3, Jeff Tillman 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 25-47 8-15 61. Three-point goals – LCA 2 (Rohrs, Price), Valley 3 (Kindig 2, Zolman); Rebounds - LCA 21 (Prinsen 3), Valley 33 (Kindig 9); Turnovers – LCA 18, Valley 11; Fouls – LCA 14, Valley 9; Fouled out - none; Records: LCA 0-2, Valley 2-1 JV – Valley 48, LCA 27 Valley – Tyler Swain 12, Chainey Zolman 11, Jarred Littlejohn 7, Will Inglehearn 4, Chandler O'Connor 4, Dylan Stimeling 4, Bryce Zimpleman 2, Alex Thacker 2, Alex Salmon 2 LCA – Zarek Finley 9, Logan Mount 9, Billy Pitts 4, Tony Boyer 3, Scott Marsh 2
