AKRON – It wasn’t exactly the start Bill Patrick was looking for. Tippecanoe Valley’s boys basketball coach, however, didn’t mind the outcome. After scoring just six points in the first quarter, Patrick’s Vikings lit up the scoreboard for 48 points in the second and third quarters Friday night and cruised to a 71-41 victory over the visiting Whitko Wildcats. It was the Three Rivers Conference opener for both teams, and with the 30-point win Valley improved to 6-1 overall and gave Patrick his 699th career win. Whitko, under the guidance of first-year coach Scott Wessel, fell to 1-6. “We didn’t play well in the first quarter,” said Patrick, now in his 15th season at Valley after coaching at Whitko for 29 seasons, accumulating 479 wins and a guiding the Wildcats to the Final Four in 1991. “We played well in stretches, and Whitko hurt themselves with ball-handling. We put pressure on the ball and got several turnovers.” The Wildcats turned the ball over 26 times, and Valley turned Whitko’s miscues into easy buckets. Because they were getting high-percentage shots the majority of the game, the Vikings were 28 of 44 (64 percent) from the field overall, while Whitko was 12 of 29 (41 percent). “We got off to a great start, we did exactly what we wanted to do,” said Wessel, whose team led 8-6 after eight minutes of play. “Valley made their run, and we didn’t respond. We weren’t ready to respond. Everybody in the world knows we’re not the best ball-handling team, that’s one of our weaknesses, and it hurt us again.” Nick Kindig’s shooting touch hurt Whitko too, as Valley’s sharp-shooting senior guard was 7 of 7 in the second quarter alone, scoring 15 of his game-high 22 points and helping the Vikings break the game open with a 13-0 run. “He can get on a roll,” Patrick said of Kindig, who made his last nine shots and finished the game 10 of 12 from the field. “He got himself open, and we got him the ball. He’s started shooting the ball better, and he can get on a roll.” Junior Tanner Andrews added 16 points in the win, while sophomore Chainey Zolman scored seven points and juniors Robby Groom and Logan Britton chipped in with five points each. Britton brought the crowd to its collective feet with a 60-foot shot that he banked in to beat the third-quarter buzzer, giving Valley a 54-28 advantage. In all, 11 players scored for the Vikings, who have won six straight since opening the season with a loss at Warsaw. Friday’s lopsided win gave Patrick a 12-5 record against his former school. “I don’t want to lose to them, I don’t want to lose to anybody,” said Patrick. “The kids know (playing Whitko means something.) They know that it’s a game if they don’t win it wouldn’t be fun at practice the next day.” Senior Alex Stoddard led Whitko with 14 points, while classmates Stephen Bennett and Gabe Powell scored 10 and nine points, respectively. Prior to the start of the varsity game Friday night, the fourth class of the Kosciusko County Basketball Hall of Fame was introduced. Among those that will be inducted in June is Patrick. Patrick is just the fifth boys coach in state history to win 699 games. He can get No. 700 Friday when the Vikings host Fairfield at 7:30 p.m. in holiday tournament action. The Wildcats are in action Wednesday when they host Plymouth.
TIPPECANOE VALLEY 71, WHITKO 41 W 8 11 9 13 – 41 TV 6 27 21 17 – 71 Whitko – Seth Patrick 0-0 0-0 0, Dylan Cumberland 1-4 4-4 6, Alex Stoddard 4-7 6-7 14, Trey Weber 1-7 0-0 2, Danny Zawlocki 0-0 0-0 0, Cole Kessie 0-0 0-0 0, Gabe Powell 2-5 5-8 9, Ian Keirn 0-1 0-0 0, Stephen Bennett 4-5 2-2 10. Totals 12-29 17-21 41. Valley – Alex Thacker 1-6 1-2 3, Robby Groom 2-2 0-0 5, Jarred Littlejohn 0-0 4-5 4, Tanner Andrews 8-14 0-0 16, Jacob Ritchey 1-1 0-0 2, Chainey Zolman 3-3 0-0 7, Nick Kindig 10-12 2-2 22, Aaron Hoffman 1-1 0-0 2, Logan Britton 2-3 0-0 5, Derek Cunningham 0-0 2-2 2, Ben Shriver 0-2 3-4 3. Totals 28-44 10-13 71. Three-pointers – Whitko 0, Valley 5 (Kindig 2, Groom, Zolman, Britton); Rebounds – Whitko 22 (Bennett 5), Valley 12 (Andrews 3); Turnovers – Whitko 26, Valley 11; Fouls – Whitko 16, Valley 15; Fouled out – Cumberland; Records: Whitko 1-6 (0-1 TRC), Valley 6-1 (1-0 TRC) JV – Valley 51, Whitko 19
