That's a fact Jack: Baucus pours in 20

Don't tell Antioch coach Mike Skinner that Carmel forward Jack Baucus is just two weeks removed from football and still trying to find his basketball legs.

"He looked like an all-American against us," Skinner said. "He was pretty good."

Baucus was a career night kind of good.

He pumped in a career- and game-high 20 points on 10-of-12 shooting and also pulled down 7 rebounds to lead Carmel to a 64-40 nonconference victory on a cold and icy Saturday night in Antioch.

Carmel moves to 2-5 on the season while Antioch is still searching for its first win at 0-5.

"I knew (Carmel) had some shooters, but I didn't know about that big kid," Antioch guard Michael Powell said of Baucus. "He had the game of his life. He played like a man and killed us down low."

The Corsairs went to Baucus from the get-go and he delivered with all kinds of pretty moves in the paint.

Yet, the Sequoits managed to hang around and were down only 27-26 at halftime.

It was when the Corsairs supplemented Baucus' efforts inside with some stiffer defensive pressure that they really made their move.

Carmel outscored Antioch 37-14 in the second half, including a 20-3 edge in the fourth quarter.

"We just really picked it up on defense," Baucus said. "We don't have a great reputation for winning at Carmel. We wanted this one. We think we can make a change (in the team's reputation). We just have to keep playing like we did tonight."

Baucus probably wouldn't mind it.

"I'm starting to feel more comfortable," Baucus said of his transition to basketball from football, which ended for Carmel just two weeks ago. "But it's all the guys around me that are just making stuff happen. I just kind of stand there and put the ball in the hoop.

"We knew that we had the size advantage (against Antioch). We knew we could get inside all day, so that was the big plan for us."

Carmel also did some damage out on the perimeter. Guards David Venegoni and Jordan Sivertsen added 16 and 11 points, respectively.

Meanwhile, Powell was the only player to score in double figures for the Sequoits. He finished with 14 points.

"We've struggled (to score) all year," Skinner said. "We don't have a go-get attitude and guys who refuse to lose. We don't have a lot of heart. We need guys who refuse to quit and we don't."