Panthers finish the regular season in stride

On a cold February night, the energy was probably cranked up some in many Creston homes to beat off the chill.

Creston Panthers boys basketball turned up its energy in a 83-63 win over Clarke in the game of the regular season. Creston finishes the regular season 7-14.

“I didn’t see any let up,” said Creston coach Bryce Schafer. “We had the energy.”

What made Schafer feel even better about his team was what they endured during the regular season; losing multiple games by a few possessions. Some of those losses were consecutive.

“It’s hard to lose four, five, six, eight games like that. But they kept it up,” he said about Thursday’s performance.

In a game that includes two-point and three-point shots, it’s only fitting the team’s players wearing 23 got things going.

Of the first 15 points in the game, Creston’s Tony Davidson scored nine and Clarke’s Jack Cooley had five. It was not until 5:54 in the first quarter when Cooley scored a field goal, the first for the Indians.

Creston was able to keep a first-quarter lead between five and 10 points. Clarke’s Ashton Giza’s 3-point shot late in the first quarter cut the deficit to 13-7. But Creston’s Cael Turner answered with a 3-point shot of his own to extend the lead to 16-7. Schafer said Creston took advantage of Clarke’s interest in defending shots by getting rebounds and more attempts shooting.

“They have length and like to use it,” Schafer said. “They like to jump.”

The second quarter Creston pulled away as its lead went into double-digits. Panther Ethan Crawford’s 3-point shot barely two minutes in the quarter put Creston up 27-11. Clarke’s Cooley scored a free throw with 3:40 left that left the Indians trailing 32-16. That would be the closest Clarke would get for most of the remaining game. Cael Turner’s bucket later on gave the Panthers a 36-16 advantage.

“We had a great shooting percentage,” Schafer said about the second-quarter push which showed on the scoreboard. “The last six or seven games we have hit a stride.” The Panthers finished making 11 3-point shots.

Creston also finished the game 16-20 at the free-throw line, another statistic Schafer said the team struggled with early on in the season.

“We were horrendous with free throws early on,” he said.

That stride helped Davidson be high scorer for Creston. He finished with 21 points including 6-7 at the free throw line. Ethan Crawford was behind Davidson scoring 14. Avery Fuller and Derek Paup each finished with nine points.

Clarke and Creston traded baskets late in the second quarter. Clarke’s Cole White had a basket and a free-throw to make it 45-23. Cooley scored before the buzzer to make it 45-25.

The second half Creston was able to maintain a 20-point lead. Cooley’s basket at the buzzer at the end of the third quarter cut the deficit to 65-43. Another Cooley basket early in the fourth quarter put Clarke behind 67-49.

Clarke finishes the regular season 15-6. Cooley was top score for Clarke with 37 points. He made 13 from the field, including a 3-point shot and was 10-15 from the free throw line. Cole White was next for Clarke finishing with eight points.

Creston begins class 3A first-round action 7 p.m., Monday at Bondurant-Farrar (14-6). The Blue Jays are led by Colby Collison who averages 18 points per game. Jaxson Fried averages 13 points per game.

Although Creston knew the district game with Bondurant-Farrar was scheduled several days ago, Schafer said the match up was always in his mind as the regular season came to a close.

“Since the Harlan game, we were thinking we want to be 1-0 in the playoffs,” Schafer said.