MIDDLEBURY — The Warsaw boys basketball team played about as well as it could Friday night at Northridge, but it just wasn’t enough. Shooting 57 percent from the field and committing just three turnovers, the Tigers (7-3, 1-1 Northern Lakes Conference) were narrowly defeated 58-56 by the Northridge Raiders (9-1, 2-0 NLC), who got a buzzer-beating shot by junior Pete Smith. “Our offense was pretty good – 15 assists and three turnovers,” Warsaw coach Doug Ogle said. “We shoot 57 percent from the field and we lose. Not too often are you going to have a game where you handle the ball pretty well and lose. The combination of Pete Smith and Nate Ritchie, tonight, was really good. That’s why they’re 9-1.” Ritchie finished the game with 21 points, but Smith was the difference, hitting all eight of his shots, scoring 19 points, including the game-winner. “Pete has a ton of skill,” Northridge coach Ronnie Thomas said of the 5-foot-11 Smith. “He’s not the biggest guy on the floor, but he makes up for it with his competitive nature. The kid’s just ultra-competitive.” Knotted at 56-56 after Warsaw sophomore Paul Marandet made one of two free throws with 34 seconds remaining, the stage was set. Killing the clock, Smith began to make his move with eight seconds to play, dribbling into the lane from the left wing and lifting a floater over the outstretched arms of two Warsaw defenders. The high-arcing shot came straight through the net without touching the rim, resulting in the Northridge student section rushing the court. “I just wanted something where we were going toward the basket,” Thomas said. “I didn’t want to settle for anything outside. We got one of our best creators going toward the basket and he hit a heck of a shot. It was a tough shot. They were there, but he got into the paint and got the shot.” Ogle also saw some good defense on the play, but it was just a better shot. “We played really good defense on that last shot,” he said. Before it came down to a buzzer beater, the Tigers came out of the gates fast, as junior Rashaan Jackson was 6 of 6 in the first quarter, netting 15 points and helping Warsaw build a 21-6 lead at one point. After scoring 23 points in the opening quarter, Warsaw only scored 17 in the second and third, while Northridge heated up and took a 33-32 lead on a Ritchie three-pointer with 5:54 led in the third quarter. “I told them, ‘Weather the storm, but stay together no matter what you do,’” Thomas said. “Our body language had been a little negative. We had guys running in their own direction, but we came back together.” Northridge built its lead to 52-44 with 4:22 remaining in the game, but Warsaw then showed its resiliency. In the final three minutes, the Tigers fought back, taking the lead on a pair of Jackson free throws with 1:07 remaining. Ritchie, however, put his team on top 56-55 with 47 seconds remaining, which was followed by the Marandet free throw, then the game-winning shot. “We didn’t play poorly,” Ogle said. “There were just too many defensive possessions where we did not stay in front of Pete Smith well enough. We did not stay in front of Nate Ritchie. Then, there were offensive possessions that were empty.” The 6-foot-7 Ritchie is receiving plenty of college attention, and it shows with his versatility, which will continue to be a problem in the NLC. “He’s a tough matchup for anybody,” Thomas said. “If they put someone bigger on him, he’s going to go around them. If you put someone smaller on him, he’s going to shoot over him.” Jackson also proved to be a matchup problem, scoring a career-high 26 points on 7-of-13 shooting, while also recording five rebounds. “Rashaan Jackson played really well for us,” Ogle said. Senior Jordan Stookey also played well, posting nine assists to go with nine points and five rebounds for the Tigers, and senior Nate Pearl had eight points and three steals. With this game behind them, the Tigers are in a stretch where they play four games in eight days. Up next for Warsaw is Tuesday’s home game against Elkhart Central, followed by Friday’s home NLC game with Goshen before hosting Fort Wayne Snider the next day. Before any of those games though, the importance of Friday night’s contest wasn’t lost on Ogle and his players, as Northridge is one of the favorites to win this year’s NLC crown. “It was a big game for both teams,” he said. “Everybody knew the importance of this game. “Just because we lost this game doesn’t mean we’ve lost the conference,” he added. Northridge has to go to NorthWood (on Jan. 17). I think a 6-1 team will be conference champs.”
NORTHRIDGE 58, WARSAW 56 W 23 9 8 16 – 56 N 10 18 18 12 – 58 Northridge – Sam Ahonen 3-6 0-0 6, Pete Smith 8-8 1-2 19, Kurtis Hochstetler 1-3 0-0 3, Tom Morrison 3-5 0-0 7, Nate Ritchie 7-13 4-6 21, Collin Utley 1-1 0-0 2, Payton Carson 0-0 0-0 0, Christian Bach 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-36 5-8 58. Warsaw – Paul Marandet 1-1 3-5 5, Nate Pearl 3-6 0-0 8, Jake Mangas 3-5 0-0 6, Jordan Stookey 4-10 0-2 9, Rashaan Jackson 9-13 5-7 26, Peyton Long 0-0 0-0 0, Tim Swanson 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 21-37 8-14 56. Three-pointers – Northridge 7-10 (Ritchie 3, Smith 2, Hochstetler, Morrison), Warsaw 6-14 (Jackson 3, Pearl 2, Stookey); Team Fouls – Northridge 15, Valley 10; Turnovers – Northridge 9, Warsaw 3; Rebounds – Northridge 17 (Ritchie 5), Warsaw 17 (Stookey 5, Jackson 5); Assists – Northridge 8 (Utley 4), Warsaw 15 (Stookey 9); Steals – Northridge 2, Warsaw 6 (Pearl 3); Blocks – Northridge 1, Warsaw 1. Records: Northridge 9-1 (2-0 NLC), Warsaw 7-3 (1-1 NLC). JV – Warsaw 27, Northridge 22 Warsaw (8-0) – Kyle Mangas 9, Jeremy David 6, Tyler Packard 5, Matt Anthony 4, Lucas Cone 2, Evan Schmidt 1
