LAKEVILLE – Triton junior Clay Yeo’s career-high 39 points were only a sidenote to his other accomplishments in Monday night’s 47th annual TCU Bi-County Boys Basketball Tournament championship game at LaVille High School. Taking on the New Prairie Cougars (9-5), who haven’t won the Bi-County since 1973, Yeo began the night by scoring his 1,000th career point at the 3:43 mark of the first quarter, then scored his career-best 38th and 39th points of night with four seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, giving Triton (11-3) a 68-66 win and its third-straight title. “It’s a great feeling,” Yeo said. “Just to have the confidence of my teammates to get me the ball in that situation. It’s amazing and we all deserve it. We’ve worked hard.” The Class 1A No. 5 Trojans had already defeated New Prairie 49-41 on Dec. 16 in New Carlisle, but that seemed to only focus the Cougars. After trailing by as much as 35-22 with 3:40 left in the first half, New Prairie used a 14-3 run to get within 35-34 at the half. Following a trey by junior Zach Rehlander at the 3:00 mark of the third quarter, New Prairie held a 45-44 lead, but then Yeo took over. In the nip-tuck game, Yeo scored Triton’s next 20 points, the final two of the stretch tying the game at 64-64 with 1:05 left. Prior to those points, Triton was playing some frantic defense, as New Prairie attempted to eat up as much of the clock as it could, clinging to a 64-62 lead and smelling its first bi-county title in 39 years. However, Triton junior Drew Mosson was able to get his hand on a Cougar pass, getting the steal and pushing it ahead, hooking up with Yeo for the tying score. “That was big,” Triton coach Jason Groves said of the Mosson steal. “We kind of went into our halfcourt trap, trying to force the action and he did a nice job of getting the steal. He made an even better decision on the 2-on-1 break of getting it to Clay.” After Triton got the ball back, senior Zak Shively was fouled going in for a lay-up, and following two made free throws, broke Yeo’s consecutive point-streak, and also gave the Trojans a 66-64 lead with 33.6 seconds left. The lead was short-lived though, as New Prairie senior Kyle Brammer continued his dominance in the post, scoring his 20th point of the night, knotting the game at 66-66 with 21 seconds left. On the night, the Cougars big man dominated the paint, hitting 9 of 10 shots, and drawing numerous fouls on the Triton post players, including the fouling out of sophomore Cody Shively, who only got 10 minutes of action. “We tried to front him, we tried to come at him with doubles, but we didn’t feel comfortable doubling him because they shoot the ball so well,” Groves said about defending Brammer. “In the first half, they were knocking down 3s. We were trying to dig, trying to front, and it seemed like every time we’d try to front, we’d get a foul called on us. Our kids were kind of unsure about how to handle the situation.” And while Brammer was a difficult matchup, Yeo was unstoppable and it showed on Triton’s last possession. With the game on the line, there was no question where the ball was going, and it ended up in Yeo’s hands. Driving to the free-throw line, Yeo raised up over the defenders and drained the game-winner with only four seconds remaining. Following a timeout, New Prairie did dribble up the court to get a good look at a three-pointer, but it was off, delivering Triton its fourth bi-county title. “Our kids have confidence,” Groves said. “That’s one thing I don’t think you can teach necessarily. That’s just one thing you have to have. I think our success has kind of brought that on. Our kids expect to win in these situations. They’ve been there before, so it’s not new to them. They feel like they’re going to win close games.” In all, Yeo made 14 of 20 field goals, including 9 of 11 free throws, and showed what he can do when his team is in need. “All of us were hitting in the first half, so I was trying to distribute to my teammates and get everyone going,” Yeo said. “But when it comes down to it, and we stop hitting, I had to take the ball into my hands and put it in the basket.” And Groves was pleased to see the change in mindset. “I thought he was being a little passive in the first half,” Groves said. “I told him, ‘Be aggressive. This is the way they’re going to play. They’re going to get up in us and force the action. Clay, be aggressive and take it to the basket.’ I thought he did a nice job.” He did indeed. That scoring prowess has made him just the fourth Triton Trojan to go over 1,000 points, and only the 10th player when combined with the days of Bourbon, Etna Green and Tippecanoe High Schools. “It’s been on my shoulders for a while now,” Yeo said about reaching the 1,000-point plateau. “I feel like for three games I’ve been wanting to reach 1,000. I’m glad I got it tonight in the championship game. It means a lot.” Yeo’s 1,000th point game actually came on the same court in which 2011 graduate Griffyn Carpenter became the Trojans’ all-time leading scorer, which happened on Jan. 21, 2011. Coincidentally, had weather not postponed Bi-County games, Yeo’s 1,000th-point game would have taken place exactly one year to the day of Carpenter’s record-breaking day. As it is, Yeo now sits just 322 points behind Carpenter’s 1,327 career points. “Griffyn is sitting up in the stands tonight, and he texted me earlier saying hopefully he’d be passing that scoring title on to me soon,” Yeo said about his former teammate, who will also become his future teammate at Valparaiso University. “I’m excited about that.” And Groves is excited to have Yeo on his side, even if he’s not keeping close tabs on his point totals. “I didn’t know he had 39,” he said. “That’s the type of player he is though — you don’t even notice it. It’s kind of quiet. To be honest, I thought it would have been in the high 20s. It’s just so subtle. He does it within what we’re trying to do. That’s the nice thing about it. It’s not like he’s shooting 50 times a game. His field-goal percentage is outstanding on the year. He’s just a great player. Fortunately, I’m reaping the benefits.” The Trojans return to Northern State Conference action Friday at Jimtown High School.
