Friday Flashback: Cougars down Ottoville

Note: This week’s installment of the Friday Flashback takes us back five years, to February, 2016, when Van Wert posted a late regular season victory by defeating Ottoville on Senior Night. Below is the story as it appeared on the VW independent Sports page.

DAVE MOSIER/independent sports

Appropriately for Van Wert’s Senior Night, three Cougar seniors combined for all but 8 of Van Wert’s points as the Cougars defeated Ottoville 53-37 in a non-league boys’ basketball game in the Cougars’ Den. It was the final home game of the regular season.

Colin Smith had 22 points, while Ryan McCracken added 14 points, including four treys, and Josh Braun had 9 points to lead the Cougars. The only Van Wert player scoring was sophomore Jacoby Kelly, who had 8 points on the night. Nick Moorman led the Big Green with 16 points.

The Cougars (5-16) and Ottoville (4-17) have both struggled this year offensively, but Van Wert definitely wanted this game more.

Van Wert got off to a quick start, outpointing the Big Green 11-4 in the first quarter to lead by 7 points. The Van Wert lead was 11 points at the half, 26-15.

Ottoville outscored the Cougars 14-12 in the third quarter to cut Van Wert lead to 9, 38-29, but the Cougars pulled away in the final stanza to preserve the victory.

Van Wert was 23 of 51 (45.1 percent) from the field, including 5 of 16 from three-point range (31.3 percent). The Big Green made 13 of 30 from the field (43.3 percent), including 4 of 11 three-point attempts (36.4 percent).

The Cougars were cold at the free throw line, knocking down just 2 of 6 attempts at the line (33.3 percent). Ottoville was 7 of 13 from the line (53.8 percent).

Van Wert dominated on the boards, bringing down 30 rebounds to 19 for the Big Green. The Cougars also had fewer turnovers than Ottoville, 10-15.

There was no junior varsity prior to the contest, although Van Wert Elementary School fourth-graders played a brief game prior to the start of the varsity contest.

Van Wert ends its regular season this Friday on the road with its final Western Buckeye League contest against Wapakoneta.