Duo leads Van Wert past Lincolnview

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports

Two Van Wert freshmen put on quite a show Saturday night.

Xavier Kelly and Zach Crummey teamed up to score 38 points and the duo led the Cougars to a 66-54 win over Lincolnview in the second game of a varsity girls/boys doubleheader at Lincolnview High School. The two games were part of the seventh consecutive “Human Trafficking Awareness” event put on by the YWCA of Van Wert County.

Crummey, a 6-5 post player, scored six of his 14 points in the opening quarter and the Cougars led 14-10 at the end of the period. Kreston Tow and Max Hammons each led Lincolnview with a trey in the opening quarter.

In the second quarter, Kelly went to work, scoring three baskets, while Keaten Welch added five points. A trey by Welch gave Van Wert a 29-19 lead with 2:45 left until halftime. A pair of foul shots by Chayse Overholt and Gavin Evans closed the gap to 29-24, but Kelly scored the final two baskets of the period, giving Van Wert a 33-24 halftime lead.

“It was nice to see – the floor opened up a little bit for ‘X’ and he’s an explosive young player,” Van Wert head coach Jeremy Best. “Anything that he can do positive is going to continue to build his confidence and the rest of our team’s confidence.”

Kreston Tow opened the third quarter with a trey, but Griff McCracken countered with one of his own, then Kelly added a bucket to push the lead to 39-29. He added a pair of free throws and another basket late in the period, but a triple by Hammons pulled Lincolnview to within five, 47-42 at the end of the quarter.

“He has the ball in his hands a lot and he does a great job taking care of it,” Hammons said of the younger Hammons. “He get pressured in a lot of the games and he battles. He can score, he does a good job of passing it for us and along with the rest of the kids, they’re going to stick their nose in there and try to be as physical as possible.”

“We know we’re not the tallest team out there but we’re going to continue to work and battle and fight and try to figure out ways we can try to get some of these wins,” he added.

Kelly, who finished with a game high 24 points, opened the fourth quarter scoring with an offensive rebound and basket, then Caden Collins turned a steal into an easy layup and a 51-42 lead. Later, a trey by McCracken turned out to be the dagger, as the Cougars went up by double digits, 56-45.

“We fought but we just made too many mistakes,” Hammons said. “With three minutes to go it was still a seven point basketball game…we had our opportunities but we had turnovers and we just weren’t able to capitalize when we were able to stop them. It felt like we could make a run but we had a couple of turnovers and they hit back-to-back threes and it hurt us.”

“Our guys are going to battle no matter who they’re playing and I’m proud of our effort but we have to be better on the defensive end and try to get more stops make shots when they’re available for us.”

Van Wert finished the game 26-of-54 from the floor and 10-of-18 from the foul line, compared to 18-of-39 shooting and 11-of-17 from the free throw line by Lincolnview. The Cougars had a sizable rebounding advantage, 31-15, and committed just four turnovers, while the Lancers had 11.

In addition to Kelly’s 24 points and Crummey’s 14, Keaten Welch added 11 points, while McCracken added nine. Cohen Bragg offered a sold all-around contribution and Best said he’s pleased with how his starting five has settled in after 11 games, along with the bench.

“When you have a starting five, it’s not who starts, it’s who finishes the game in some situations but our guys on the bench are bringing in energy,” Best said. “Our guys are with us – I don’t think we have one selfish kid on this team. They’re young, they’re inexperienced, they’re fun to be around and they’ve come so far. We have to finish games and tonight we got a finish.”

“I’m kind of steering the ship but I told the guys it’s their team,” he continued. “I’m looking for leaders and I don’t care how old they are, I want someone who feels confident in leading us when the game is being played.”

Box teams will play on the road Friday night, with Van Wert at Defiance and Lincolnview at Spencerville.

Box score

Cougars  14  19  14  19 – 66

Lancers  10  14  18  12  – 54

Van Wert: Xavier Kelly 9-5-24; Griff McCracken 3-1-9; Keaten Welch 3-4-11;  Caden Collins 2-0-4; Zach Crummey 7-0-14; Cohen Bragg 2-0-4

Lincolnview: Kreston Tow 4-0-10; Max Hammons 6-2-17; Holden Price 0-4-4; Zander Coil 1-0-2; Gavin Evans 2-2-6; Chayse Overholt 4-3-13; Kody Hamilton 1-0-2