Friday Flashback: Knights vs. LCC T-birds

Note: This week’s Friday Flashback takes as back to January of 2014 when two undefeated and state-ranked teams – Crestview and Lima Central Catholic – met on the hardwood, with the Knights pulling out a win in Convoy. Here is the story as it appeared on the VW independent Sports page.

Van Wert independent sports

CONVOY — It was a much-hyped battle of undefeated teams as Crestview played Lima Central Catholic on Friday, but the Knights made their free throws and some pressure field goals down the stretch to come out on top, 66-54, in a game played at Crestview.

The Knights, ranked No. 2 in Division IV, took a three-point lead, 14-11, over LCC, ranked No. 3 in Division III, at the end of the first quarter. Crestview then saw that lead dwindle to just a basket, 28-26, at halftime, after the Thunderbirds outscored the Knights 15-14 in the second quarter.

The third quarter was the key to the game, though, as the Knights more than doubled LCC’s output, 18-8, to go up by 12, 46-34, with one quarter left to play. Crestview basically just hit its free throws down the stretch, something the Knights did all game, making 27 of 31 attempts at the charity stripe.

The T-Birds scored 20 points in the final period, but Crestview matched that output with a 14-of-17 performance at the free throw line and clutch shooting from the field to preserve the victory for the home team.

Crestview’s Damian Helm led all scorers with 23 points, with 13 of those coming in the first half. Cam Etzler added 11 points for the Knights – all of those in the second half. Helm and Etzler also didn’t have a miss at the free-throw line in the game, going 18 of 18 at the line. Preston Zaleski had 9 points for Crestview, while Isaiah Simerman added 8 points for the Knights. Xavier Simpson was LCC’s top scorer with 19 points, while Martyce Kimbrough added 16 points for the T-Birds.

With the win, Crestview is now 9-0 on the year, while LCC falls to 9-1 on the season.