Neuqua Valley responds in time for victory
Things were not looking good for the Neuqua Valley boys basketball team in the early going of Tuesday night's game against Rich Central at Riverside-Brookfield's holiday tournament.
The Olympians' 1-3-1 trapping defense forced 8 Wildcats turnovers in the first quarter, which led to a couple easy fastbreak baskets. But Rich Central was also its own worst enemy, turning the ball back over to Neuqua and allowing the Wildcats to figure things out and come away a 71-56 winner.
"Absolutely, we were fortunate," Neuqua coach Todd Sutton said. "Our defense made some defensive stops that kept us in it when we could not score at all. The defense kept us in it long enough to start hitting shots."
Neuqua guard Tyler Sutton, stuck with 10 points at halftime after missing three open 3-point looks, missed just one field-goal attempt in the second half and finished with a game-high 31 points.
As Neuqua (2-0) figured out how to break the trap, the inexperienced members of the Wildcats' lineup began to relax and make basketball plays. With Sutton finally hot, all that was needed was a fake to the wing and a pass inside.
Once during the fourth quarter, center Nate Boudreau took the interior pass and fired back out to Sutton who was wide open.
"What a pass by Nate," Todd Sutton said. "Who passes 6 inches away from the basket? That's great teamwork."
Rich Central (0-2) was led by Munang Ekoi's 14 points, while Jamal Murray chipped in 11 points and 10 rebounds.
"Once they figured out the 1-3-1 trap they had patience with it," Olympians coach Bobbie Smith said. "It's really designed to wear you down, and we were doing it, but we kind of wore down ourselves."
The Wildcats picked up 8 points from senior Peter Catchings and junior Pat Kenny, 7 from junior Darien Misken, and 5 apiece from senior Boudreau, senior Jesse White and sophomore Elijah Roberton all growing into new roles after the loss of some big-time players.
"We know we have some young guys, a lot of inexperience," Todd Sutton said. "We know we're going to make mistakes, but as they grow they'll get better."