AKRON – As impressive as his team’s offense was, Tippecanoe Valley boys basketball coach Bill Patrick said the Vikings beat Knox Friday night by playing solid defense. In a game it dominated from the opening tip, Valley held the Redskins to 34 percent shooting from the field, made 15 steals and forced 21 total turnovers. It all added up to an impressive 77-37 win, as the host Vikings improved to 2-1 on the season. Knox fell to 1-2. “We put a lot of pressure on the ball,” said Patrick. “I thought we made them pick up their dribble, and when we did that we were able to get some steals. We played pretty solid defense.” As a result of Valley’s tenacious defense, the Redskins were just 11 of 32 from the field overall and made just 1 of 8 three-point attempts. The Vikings, on the other hand, were 30 of 51 (59 percent) from the field overall and 7 of 13 (57 percent) from the arc. Senior Nick Kindig led Valley with a game-high 21 points, while senior Jacob Ritchey and junior Ben Shriver scored 11 points each and junior Tanner Andrews chipped in with eight points. In all, nine Valley players made their way into the scoring column, as the Vikings gave their Hall of Fame coach his 695th career victory. “I thought we played good team basketball on both ends of the floor,” said Patrick. “We had good ball movement, and we took pretty good shots. We couldn’t find very many negative things tonight. I thought we played pretty well. We’ve got nine guys that can play, and nine guys that can score.” Valley opened the game on a 9-0 run and eventually led 15-4 after the first quarter, 36-20 at halftime and 53-31 heading into the final frame. Patrick called his team’s 72-64 season-opening loss to county rival Warsaw a wake-up call. The Vikings have won their last two games by 28 and 40 points. “That Warsaw game was a wake-up call,” said Patrick. “We didn’t play good defense in that game at all. Since then, we’ve played pretty solid defense. The kids thought we could just show up to the gym and play so-so. We needed a wake-up call. I’ve been pleased with our effort the last two games.” While Valley’s defense came up with 15 steals against Knox, the Vikings dished out 19 assists on the offensive end. Junior point guard Robby Groom finished with six points and six assists, while Andrews added four assists of his own. Ritchey led the team in steals with four, while Andrews made three steals. Junior Austin Hansen scored a team-high 10 points for Knox, while junior Curt Scherer and senior Dylan Short added nine and eight points, respectively. The Vikings are in action again Tuesday when they host Lakeland Christian Academy.
TIPPECANOE VALLEY 77, KNOX 37 K 4 16 11 6 – 37 TV 15 21 17 24 – 77 Knox – Jordan Anderson 0-0 0-1 0, Davey Johnston 1-2 1-2 3, Dylan Short 2-5 4-7 8, Curt Scherer 3-5 2-3 9, Caleb Heineman 0-1 0-0 0, Colton Fox 0-0 0-0 0, Jeremy Crittendon 0-1 1-2 1, Cody Fletcher 0-0 0-0 0, Brian Fulghum 1-4 0-0 2, Colton Hill 2-11 0-0 4, Dakota Manns 0-0 0-0 0, Austin Hansen 2-3 6-9 10. Totals 11-32 14-24 37. Valley – Alex Thacker 2-6 1-3 5, Robby Groom 2-5 0-0 6, Jarred Littlejohn 2-2 0-0 4, Tanner Andrews 4-8 0-0 8, Jacob Ritchey 4-6 2-2 11, Chainey Zolman 3-4 2-5 9, Nick Kindig 7-12 4-4 21, Aaron Hoffman 0-0 0-0 0, Logan Britton 1-1 0-3 2, Derek Cunningham 0-0 0-0 0, Ben Shriver 5-7 1-2 11, Chandler O’Connor 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-51 10-19 77. Three-pointers – Knox 1 (Scherer), Valley 7 (Kindig 3, Groom 2, Ritchey, Zolman); Rebounds – Knox 23 (Hansen 6), Valley 31 (Britton 6); Steals – Knox 6 (Short 2), Valley 15 (Ritchey 4); Turnovers – Knox 21, Valley 11; Fouls – Knox 15, Valley 21; Fouled out – none; Records: Knox 1-2, Valley 2-1 JV – Valley 31, Knox 14 Valley – Aaron Hoffman 9, Jarred Littlejohn 8, Neil Clampitt 6, Brandon Webster 2, Bryce Zimpleman 2, Gavin Bussard 2, Chandler O’Connor 2
