Lima CC ends Crestview’s season 48-44

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports

ELIDA — It was an exciting finish, but not the exciting finish Crestview had hoped for.

With 24 seconds left in Friday’s Division VI district championship game at the Elida Fieldhouse, Lima Central Catholic freshman guard Jeff Williams hit 1-of-2 foul shots to give the second seeded Thunderbirds a 46-44 lead. No. 1 seed Crestview (20-5) called time out to set up perhaps the final play, but it didn’t go as planned. Williams stepped in front of a Knight pass and sailed three quarters court for a game clinching layup in the waning seconds and a 48-44 victory.

“We had a play coming out of the huddle that we run a lot, to get Wren (Sheets) isolated up top with a shooter in the corner,” Crestview head coach Doug Etzler said. “We got it but we didn’t get it to him quick enough and obviously it broke down – now we’re scrambling and we had no time outs left and obviously we didn’t make a play. They made more plays down the stretch than we did.”

The final 45 seconds of the game were eventful. A controversial offensive foul by the Knights led to a foul shot by Williams, then after a steal, the Knights missed a layup and a pair of foul shots. Earlier in the fourth quarter, the Knights took the lead twice, both on Liam Putman layups that made it 40-38, then 42-41, which was the final time Crestview led in the game. Lima Central Catholic connected on 3-of-6 foul shots after that and endured the late turnover.

“We’re a young team and we make young player mistakes on the floor but regardless they still keep fighting and finding a way to win the game,” Lima Central Catholic head coach Sean Powell said.

In the first quarter, the Thunderbirds (17-7) shot the lights out, connecting on six treys, including a deep three beyond the top of the key by Williams as time expired, a shot that gave Lima Central Catholic a 19-11 lead. However, Crestview scored the first 10 points of the second quarter and took a 21-19 lead. Lima Central Catholic’s first two point basket of the game came halfway through the second period and tied the game 21-21. An offensive rebound and put back by Sheets gave Crestview a 23-21 lead, but back-to-back triples by Williams and Priddy put the Thunderbirds ahead 27-24. At halftime, Lima Central Catholic enjoyed a 29-27 lead. The Thunderbirds were 8-of-14 from three point range in the first half with Priddy connecting on four of his six long range attempts. He went on to finish with a game high 19 points, while Williams added 15.

“LCC shot the ball extremely well in the first half from three point range,” Etzler said. “They did that the other night too (vs. Bluffton) so you hope they don’t put two nights like that back-to-back but we came out in the second quarter and regrouped a bit, got right back in the game and made it a ball game at halftime.”

The third quarter was largely void of scoring, as the Thunderbirds scored just seven points and Crestview scored six. Lima Central Catholic lef 36-33 entering the final period.

“We went to some different defenses in the second half,” Etzler explained. “We went a triangle-and-2 but they really slowed it down and they weren’t as aggressive as they were against our zones.

Sheets led Crestview with 15 points and nine rebounds, while Heffner added 12 points. The Knights finished the game 19-of-39 shooting and 3-of-7 from the free throw line with 11 turnovers, including five in the first quarter. Crestview enjoyed a slight advantage on the boards, 22-20.

While not the result the Knights wanted, Etzler said he’s proud of his team’s accomplishments this season.

“We started the season 2-3 and if that point if you told us we’d be 20-5 and we’d have the ball to (possibly) win the district title, we’d take it at that point,” he stated. “I’m really proud of our seniors – Tommy and Wren have meant a lot to our program and for our younger guys, we’re not lowering our expectations. This is what you have to dream for every year and it’s going to take a little bit more than what we did tonight.”

Box score

Lima CC    19  10   7  12 – 48

Crestview  11  16   6  11 – 44

Lima Central Catholic: Jordan Priddy 6-2-19; Jeff Williams 5-2-15; Brady Parker 3-0-8; Matthew Quatman 1-0-2; Jaxon White 0-2-2; Dom McKee 1-0-2

Crestview: Hayden Perrott 2-0-6; Braxton Leeth 1-0-3; Liam Putman 2-0-4; Tommy Heffner 5-2-12; Owen Heckler 1-0-2; Will Sheets 1-0-2; Wren Sheets 7-1-15