FORT WAYNE - Steven Tillman hit 7 of 8 free throws in the fourth quarter to lead Tippecanoe Valley to a 71-58 victory over Peru in the semifinal matchup in the Wayne Sectional Friday night.
Valley pulled away early in the fourth en route to the 13-point victory.Valley will face Norwell in the championship game tonight. Norwell held
on for a 16-14 win over sectional host Wayne.
Tillman came off the bench to replace Shane Salyer in the fourth quarter. Tillman pulled down two key rebounds and began his stretch of free throws.
"Tillman made a couple of key plays down the stretch. Salyer did a great job also, we just put in Tillman and he began to play well,"
Valley Coach Bill Patrick said.
The game was not an easy one as Peru played some great defense the first three quarters.
Peru led most of the game and carried a 46-45 lead into the final quarter.
"There were three plays in which we made that turned the game into a 10-point lead for Tippecanoe Valley. When we got down by so much it forced us to start fouling. We played pretty well until then," Peru coach Eric Thompson said.
Valley held Peru's Jacob Briscoe to five points in the game. Briscoe picked up two quick fouls in the third quarter that immediately put him on the bench most of the second half with four fouls.
"Jerrod Parker did a nice job in the middle for us. He matched up pretty well with Briscoe," Patrick said.
Most of the first half was a see-saw battle. The biggest lead for either team was six late in the second quarter when Peru held a 30-24 lead.
Valley scored the final four points of the half to go into the locker room down 30-28. Kevin Kindig hit two free throws and Chad Hoffer hit a layup just before the buzzer.
"Peru is a very good team. They came into the game playing as well as anybody. They won five of their last seven games. We just played well in the fourth to pull away and come away with the win," Patrick said.
Hoffer led all scorers with 20 points, including 12 in the second half. Hoffer also blocked a shot that flew out of bounds in the second quarter bringing the Valley fans off of their seats.
"We started the game with a zone defense. We don't play zone very often and Brad Smith hit three three-point shots early," Patrick said. Valley took the lead for good when Kindig rebounded a missed shot from Ryan Scherzer and tipped the ball in. Valley would never trail in the game again.
Valley went on a 10-2 run and forced Peru to call a timeout with 4:19 left. Valley ran their lead to 55-50.
Adam Nelson scored five of his 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the free throw line to close out the scoring for Valley. Nelson also pulled down four rebounds.
"Congratulations to Tippecanoe Valley on their victory. I wish them luck tomorrow night," Thompson said.
Kindig scored 16 points and had six rebounds. He also hit two key three-point baskets and added one steal.
Parker, who finished with four points, also pulled down six rebounds.
Salyer added eight points and 4 rebounds.
When asked about the game against Norwell, Patrick commented.
"(Saturday) night should provide a pretty good matchup. We can play a 16-14 game like they did tonight or we can play a 65-60 game. Norwell is a pretty good team."
Peru was led in scoring by Jairus Burt with 14 points and two steals. Patrick Comeford and Smith each contributed 11 points. Keaton Worland and Wes Zimmerman each had six.
