Cougs, Knights win non-league games

DAVE MOSIER/independent sports

The Ottoville Big Green slowed the tempo down in their game against Van Wert, but the Cougars still found a way to win, earning a 43-37 non-conference victory on Friday night at home.

Ottoville did a good job of keeping the Cougars’ fast-break offense in check, earning a 28-28 tie at the end of three quarters. But Van Wert went on a 15-9 run in the final stanza to escape with the win.

Joey Hurless led Van Wert with 13 points, while AJ Smith added 11 counters, including 4 of 6 from the free-throw line. The Big Green had three players of the five players who scored in double figures, with Luke Schimmoeller scoring 12 points, with Derek Schimmoeller and Ryan Honigford adding 10 points apiece to Ottoville’s offensive efforts.

With the victory, the Cougars are now 2-1 overall, while Ottoville is 1-1 on the young season.

Van Wert won the game from beyond the arc and at the free-throw line, as the Big Green outshot the Cougars from two-point range, hitting half of their 20 attempts (50 percent), while Van Wert, traditionally deadly from inside the arc, made only 7 of 16 two-point attempts (43.8 percent). The Cougars were 6 of 17 from three-point range (35.3 percent), with Hurless and Kyle Keber each making two and Smith and Connor Holliday adding one trey each. Ottoville was 3 of 10 from three-point range (30 percent).

Van Wert also had the edge at the free-throw line, knocking down 11 of 17 free throws (64.7 percent), while the Big Green made 8 of 13 (61.5 percent).

The Cougars also hit the boards hard, bringing down 18 rebounds to 13 for Ottoville, and the Van Wert “D” forced the Big Green into 15 turnovers, while the Cougars had 9 miscues.

The Van Wert junior varsity team also won a two-quarter forfeit game 27-9 when the Big Green only had six players suit up. Nick Keber led the scoring with 8 points.

The Cougars will begin their Western Buckeye League schedule this coming Friday with a game at Lima Shawnee, and will then play two non-conference games against Coldwater (Monday, December 17) and Paulding (Tuesday, December 18).

The Crestview Knights also won their non-conference game against Delphos St. John’s, 42-36, outscoring the Blue Jays 15-8 in the final stanza after trailing in the middle two quarters. The Knights took a five-point lead, 12-7, in the first quarter, but saw that evaporate as St. John’s went on a 13-4 run in the second stanza for a four-point lead of their own, 20-16, at the half. Crestview chipped away at the lead and trailed by just one, 28-27, at the three-quarter mark. Cam Etzler led the Knights with 21 points (half the Crestview offensive total), while Ryan Buschor had 9 points for the Jays.