Cardington gets past Northmor

In a battle between the top two teams in the KMAC standings, Cardington was able to outlast visiting Northmor Friday night to earn a 51-49 win.

The win boosted the Pirates to 4-0 in league play. Northmor falls to 3-1, where they are now tied with Centerburg for second place.

The two teams challenged each other throughout the game. Trailing 48-42 with three minutes left in the fourth, Northmor got a three-pointer by A.J. Bower followed by a basket and free throw from Grant Bentley and one foul shot by Jax Wenger to take a one-point lead with under a minute left.

The Pirates would come up big down the stretch, though. A.J. Hall hit a basket and drew a foul. After he hit his shot from the charity stripe to give Cardington a two-point lead, the Pirates would then get a big block on a late Northmor three-point attempt to preserve the win.

Cardington coach Jason Rice knew this game was going to be a tough one.

“We told the kids at the beginning of this one, it wasn’t going to be a blowout,” he said. “It was going to be two heavyweights, the best two teams in the KMAC. We told them it was going to be a one-possession game. We had to make plays late. I know we took a lead…they battled back. The Bower kid hit a huge three. Grant had a big game. I thought we played well, we responded.”

Northmor coach Blade Tackett noted the game came down to Cardington simply making one more play.

“I don’t necessarily think we had to come back,” he said of his team’s fourth quarter. “I think we still had them right where we wanted them. If we keep that team inside of two possessions, I like our chances. Three minutes, we’re down six and I still like where we’re at and then we’re up one under a minute. A.J. Hall makes a great play down there on the baseline. I could have went both ways. Good for them; it’s a really good team.”

For most of the game, neither team could maintain a lead. Northmor scored the first four points of the game, but Cardington responded with seven in a row — including a three-pointer by Merek McClure — to surge in front. However, the Golden Knights would finish the period on a 9-2 run sparked by four points from Wenger, who was seeing his first extended action of the season after returning from injury.

Tackett noted that his team still isn’t healthy, though. Around when Wenger was cleared, point guard Cole Cuffman suffered a broken wrist. Meanwhile, senior star Grant Bentley had been battling through shoulder issues that caused him to briefly leave the game twice.

“Grant’s shoulder pops out twice today,” he said. “He’s tough as nails because that thing comes out and it’s up to him. If he can handle the pain, he can go back in. If he can’t, he sits out. Typically, when it pops out, he lets it ride on the bench. Today, I think with the stakes of the game, he just kept wanting to get back in and I’m proud of him for that.”

Trailing 17-11 early in the second quarter, four points by Isaiah Ward helped the Pirates regain the lead with an 8-0 run. A free throw by Hunter Fulk ended that streak, but Cardington got back-to-back shots by Journey Williamson and Brayden Lackey to lead by five.

Northmor would cut their deficit to 25-24, but Hall ended the half with a buzzer-beating three to send his team into the locker room with a four-point lead.

The teams would continue to trade the lead in the third quarter. Trailing 31-27, Northmor got a basket by Fulk and three-pointer from Bentley to take a one-point advantage. However, the Pirates would finish the third on a 12-6 run sparked by seven McClure points.

Leading 43-38 going into the fourth, the Pirates were able to maintain an advantage for much of the period, but Northmor’s late-game run put them on the ropes until Hall was able to hit what would be the game-winning shot and free throw.

Rice noted that his seniors (Hall, McClure and Ward)) have done a great job sticking with the program through some adversity over the years.

“These seniors have had a stretch where I was told I was the first coach who came back for a second year,” he said. “This is an all-in group with us. We do stuff all offseason together. They’re part of my family. I told them when they graduate, I might be bawling like a baby. We just keep saying all-in; we’re a family.”

Northmor was led by Bentley, who scored 17. Wenger added 12 for the Golden Knights. For Cardington, A.J. Bream tallied 11 points, while both McClure and Ward scored 10 and Hall added eight.

Rice noted this was a huge win for his team.

“We’ve had this date circled for a while,” he said. “We told our kids that we want to be 3-0. We knew they’d come in 3-0 in the conference. This is game we have to get. It’s at our place. We’ve got to win and take it to 4-0. We have Centerburg next Saturday. It’s going to be a big challenge, too.”

Tackett said that his team will have to learn from this setback, mentioning that they’ll have to take care of business on the court in order to ensure the rematch will have a lot riding on it.

“The thing about that is, this game is not going to have any stakes if we decide to let one slip against another KMAC team,” he said. “We take things a game at a time and the KMAC is brutal. I didn’t think coming into this season the KMAC champion would go undefeated. Maybe Cardington will prove us wrong, but I think this league is competitive enough within itself that anyone can beat anyone on a given night.”

Rob Hamilton can be reached at 419-946-3010, ext. 1807. Connect with him on Twitter at @SportsMCS