SOUTH WHITLEY - Emotions boiled over Tuesday night at Whitko High School.
After the visiting Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian Braves nabbed a 79-74 win over the Whitko Wildcats in boys basketball action, the two squads had to be separated at midcourt amidst a Blackhawk celebration."It's unfortunate it ended that way," Blackhawk coach Jay Sefton said. "Credit to our kids for keeping their cool and walking off the court in the midst of, sometimes, the adults losing their's."
Adults were involved in the confrontation, which seemed inevitable as the two teams seemed to have a genuine dislike for each other, despite playing in different classes, conferences and counties.
"Competitors competing and it got out of hand at times," Sefton said. "We've got a competitive team and they've got a competitive team. We have a couple kids that can play at a really high level and they have a couple that can really play at a high level."
The kids playing at a high level for Blackhawk were seniors Russell Byrd and Seth Kisler, who both finished with double-doubles.
Inside, the 6-foot-8 Kisler scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, while the 6-foot-7 perimeter-oriented Byrd, who will playing for Tom Izzo at Michigan State next year, scored 21 points and had 12 rebounds despite sitting out the first quarter for disciplinary reasons.
"Just a lapse of judgment in our last game and a learning tool," Sefton said about Byrd's presence on the bench. "Sometimes the bench can be a good teacher."
Once Byrd did get on the court, he made his presence known, as the Braves scored 26 second-quarter points after netting just 13 in the first quarter. The scoring turnaround helped reverse a 19-13 deficit into a 39-29 halftime lead.
"He's a nice player," Sefton said of Byrd. "Coming off the bench was a different role for him, and in a lot of ways, it was probably a breath of fresh air. He was able to see how the game was being played, how the game was being called. He could then adjust and make an immediate impact, which he did."
For Whitko, the offense laid directly on the shoulders of junior Zac VanDeWater and sophomore Logan Irwin, who combined to score 62 of the Wildcat's 74 points, making 18 of the team's 21 field goals.
VanDeWater led the way with 33 points, followed by Irwin's 29, but without a solid third option, overcoming the Braves was just too much.
Whitko's third-leading scorer was freshman Alex Stoddard, who scored seven points. Conversely, outside of Blackhawk's big two, the Braves also received 17 points from junior Landon Sittler, 12 from senior Mitchell Whitman and another seven from sophomore Reid Zimmerman.
The balanced scoring helped Blackhawk build a 56-43 lead late in the third quarter, but a 10-0 Whitko run, sparked by back-to-back VanDeWater three-pointers, cut the lead to 56-53 with 7:09 to play in the game.
The Wildcats, led by Irwin's 22 fourth-quarter points, kept making runs at the Braves, but couldn't tie or take the lead. Their last attempt came with 15 seconds to play, but an Irwin three was off the mark, and Zimmerman went on to connect on two free throws, sealing the win.
Despite the loss, Whitko coach Rob Irwin still saw a positive.
"The good thing is they're young and battling," he said. "They're becoming a pretty tight group."
The tightness showed in the second half as the Wildcats used a swarming defense to force turnovers and frustrate the Braves.
"I believe, if we play like that, we'll have a good chance of winning the sectional," Irwin said.
The aggressive play was equal on both sides, as each team was whistled for 25 fouls and Whitko shot 29 free throws to Blackhawk's 26.
Even with the large number of fouls called, both coaches would have liked to have seen the game controlled even more to, perhaps, avoid the ugly scene at the end.
"If you don't nip things early and really set a tone, it has a chance of going that route," Sefton said. "I don't think anything was meant to show anyone up or intended to humiliate in any shape or form."
The postgame tension wasn't what anyone would have liked to have seen, but the Whitko coach was pleased to see some fight from his guys.
"I don't mind our kids playing like that," Irwin said. "I like it. That way, we showed some pride and some toughness."
Whitko closes out its regular season Friday at NorthWood, where the junior varsity tips off at 6:15 p.m.
FW BLACKHAWK 79, WHITKO 74
B 13 26 17 23 - 79
W 19 10 20 25 - 74
Blackhawk - Landon Sittler 5-9 6-6 17, Mitchell Whitman 4-8 2-3 12, Reid Zimmerman 2-2 3-4 7, Seth Kisler 8-12 4-6 20, Tim Howard 1-1 0-1 2, Taylor Friesen 0-1 0-0 0, Chandler Schuette 0-0 0-0 0, Russell Byrd 7-14 4-6 21, Matt Kaplanis 0-1 0-0 0, Jon Neumeister 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-48 19-26 79.
