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After a 19-point loss at Elkhart Memorial Friday, fourth-year Warsaw boys basketball coach Doug Ogle said the Crimson Chargers were the best team the Tigers had seen this season.
Twenty-four hours later, Ogle said Marion had more firepower.
With four players scoring in double figures, Marion beat host Warsaw 65-48 Saturday night in the Tigers' first home game in three weeks.
Returning to the Tiger Den, playing just their fifth home game in 15 games, seemed like a bit of a remedy as Warsaw raced out to an 11-2 lead over the bigger, more physical Giants.
The Tigers' finish, however, wasn't as good as their start and they lost their fourth straight game, while the Giants improved to 13-4 with their seventh straight win.
"As the game wore on Marion was more physical," said Ogle, whose team fell to 7-9 on the season. "Their legs were more under them."
Ogle was referring to the fact that Warsaw played Friday night, while Marion didn't.
And on top of that, with 6-foot-7 seniors T.J. Jones and Billy Pettiford, the Giants were simply more physical.
Both Jones and Pettiford are Division I recruits, and Saturday they combined for 25 points and 17 rebounds.
Jones scored 13 points and pulled down five rebounds, while Pettiford had 12 points and 12 rebounds.
"I'm glad Jones and Pettiford are seniors," said Ogle.
The duo combined for 32 points and 13 rebounds last year as Marion posted a 70-47 win over the Tigers in Bill Green Athletic Arena.
Marion's win over Warsaw Saturday gave the Giants an 18-8 advantage in the series of basketball-crazy and Goliath-like schools and handed the Tigers their first-four game losing streak since the 1987-88 season.
Saturday's 17-point loss also marked the first time since the 1981-82 season the Tigers have lost three consecutive games by more than 10 points.
"They're a heck of a team," Ogle said of Marion. "They're a very good team. They sure shot well."
For the game, Marion was 24 of 43 (56 percent) from the field overall and were 8 of 15 from three-point range. The Tigers were 19 of 39 (49 percent) from the field, including a 6-of-11 performance from three-point range.
Marion's Julius Mays scored the first two points of the game, and then the host Tigers responded with an 11-0 run.
It was an 11-0 run in the second half by Marion, however, that went a long way in deciding the outcome.
Warsaw senior Colin Clemens scored the first five points of the second half, giving the Tigers a 27-26 lead.
It was the last time the Tigers led, and Marion went on an 11-0 run and outscored Warsaw 39-21 the rest of the way.
"We had a string of turnovers in that span, which Marion was able to string into points" said Ogle. "We had 10 turnovers in the game, and they all came at critical times. You can't do that against a team as talented as Marion."
While Ogle isn't upset that he won't have to prepare for Jones and Pettiford anymore, they weren't the only ones to hurt Warsaw Saturday.
Mays, a sophomore, led the Giants with 17 points, while junior Jordan Bragg added 13 points. Sophomore Jay Edwards, some of 1980s Marion great Jay Edwards, scored seven points. Junior Jarrett Bragg came off the bench to score three points.
The Tigers were led in scoring by Clemens, who finished the game 8 of 13 from the field and 1 of 2 from the free throw line for a game-high 21 points. Clemens made his first four three-point attempts and finished 4 of 5 beyond the arc.
Miles Plumlee, a 6-7 junior, showed his shooting range for the Tigers. He hit a nothing-but-net trey from the top of the key and finished with 11 points. He missed his first two shots, but made five of his final six shots. Plumlee scored nine of his 11 points in the fourth quarter.
Senior Shaun Cabrera scored seven points and pulled down eight rebounds for Warsaw, while classmate Mitch Reinholt finished with four points. Senior John-Wesley Maierle and junior Steve Lemasters scored two points each for the Tigers, while freshman Mason Plumlee scored one.
Warsaw is in action again Thursday when it hosts Northern Lakes Conference rival Plymouth.
MARION 65, WARSAW 48
Marion 11 15 16 23 - 65
Warsaw 13 9 11 15 - 48
Marion FG FT R S Pts.
* Edwards 3-7 1-3 2 1 7
* Jo. Bragg 3-6 4-4 0 1 13
* Mays 7-12 0-0 2 0 17
* Pettiford 4-7 3-4 12 2 12
* Jones 6-9 1-2 5 0 13
Ja. Bragg 1-2 0-0 1 0 3
Jackson 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Totals 24-43 9-13 22 4 65
Warsaw FG FT R S Pts.
* Cabrera 3-8 0-0 8 2 7
* T. Reinholt 0-1 0-0 5 1 0
* Maierle 1-3 0-0 2 0 2
* M. Reinholt 2-5 0-0 0 0 4
* Clemens 8-13 1-2 3 0 21
Mi. Plumlee 5-8 0-1 0 0 11
Lemasters 0-0 2-2 0 0 2
Ma. Plumlee 0-1 1-2 0 0 1
Totals 19-39 4-7 18 3 48
Three-point goals - Marion 8-15 (Jo. Bragg 3-6, Mays 3-5, Ja. Bragg 1-2, Jones 1-1, Edwards 0-1), Warsaw 6-11 (Clemens 4-5, Cabrera 1-3, Mi. Plumlee 1-2, Ma. Plumlee 0-1). Turnovers - Marion 9, Warsaw 10. Fouls - Marion 11, Warsaw 8. Fouled out - none.
JV - Marion 46, Warsaw 25
Warsaw scoring - Chambers 8, Waikel 8, Poe 5, Long 2, West 2
