FREDERICKTOWN — The Mid-Buckeye Conference has intense battles nearly every night, and on Tuesday in Fredericktown every bucket mattered.
Fredericktown’s boys basketball team hosted the rival Centerburg Trojans, and the two teams put on quite a show for their fans. It took overtime to decide the winner, and when the dust settled, the Trojans escaped town with a 48-38 victory.
“Every time we play Fredericktown, whether it’s here or there, you can just throw the records out,” said Centerburg head coach Jim Simpson. “It is always a battle. They were prepared for us and they played the type of game they wanted to play tonight. They wanted to keep the score down, and they kept it down.
“Every game is a big game, no matter who we play,” he continued. “We have to keep the intensity up in every game, just like this one. It’s going to get tougher each game we play, and we just have to make sure that we come out ready for that.”
The teams started out slow, and the offensive action took nearly the entire game to build to a crescendo. The first half saw the two teams take turns with offensive runs. Centerburg began the game by scoring the first five points. Fredericktown bounced right back and went on a 7-0 run before the Trojans grabbed a basket to knot the score at 7 at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter saw the Trojans hustle and score the first 10 points. Fredericktown battled back, and finished the first half on an 8-2 run. The game promised to be a nail-biter as the two teams headed to the locker room with the Trojans holding a slim 19-15 lead.
“We had a few breakdowns throughout the course of the game and we missed some easy shots,” said Fredericktown head coach Kirk Manns. “We had our chances, we just didn’t capitalize. This was a good MBC battle and it usually is when we play them.”
The third quarter was slow. The Trojans scored four points in the third while the Freddies managed only one point.
Both teams seemed to save their best for the fourth quarter. The teams exchanged baskets and at the buzzer, a Fredericktown jumper by Thomas Hinkle tied the game at 36.
Centerburg took control of the game in the overtime period and outscored the Freddies, 12-2, to cruise to victory.
“We told the team [after regulation] we just have to keep battling,” said Simpson. “We knew we had to out battle them down the stretch, and that’s what it came down to. We had a couple of quick shots in the overtime and that helped us. We got that little lead and they had to put us on the [free-throw] line.”
A big reason for the Trojans victory was the play of senior point guard Jacob White. White only scored one point, but what he did on the defensive side of the ball and as a leader on the team made a difference.
“I think Jacob White’s senior leadership took over tonight,” Simpson said. “He stepped it up, he was the one we needed to have as the game went on. He took over and I think he is the reason why we pulled this out.”
“This was a big game,” said White. “It was our first MBC game and we knew we had to come out strong. We had to set a standard for everyone else. We turned it up a notch tonight, and it was a huge step for us.”
Centerburg was led by Brandt Lambert, who scored 19 points. Collin Bumpus added 10 points and Drew Osborne had nine points. The Freddies were led by Thomas Hinkle, who scored 16 points.
In junior varsity action, Centerburg defeated Fredericktown 38-24. Lyle Lindsay led the Trojans with 16 points, while Troy Lemke had 10. Fredericktown was led by Clay Riley, who scored six points.
