By E. Shawn Aylsworth
Managing Editor
NEW CASTLE â??? Class 3A No. 2 Lebanon rallied from a nine-point second-half deficit behind a pair of underclassmen to upset Class 4A top-ranked Carmel, 56-52, in a championship game battle of unbeatens Dec. 29 at the 22nd Annual Hall of Fame Classic.
A 6-0 run to start the fourth quarter gave the Tigers (11-0) a 39-37 lead, and from that point on this thriller was in doubt till Lebanon sophomore guard Maggie Boyer canned both free throws with :04.7 to go.
In fact, it was the ball handling and free throw prowess of the 5â??10â? sophomore, along with an identical 4-for-4 effort from the foul line from junior guard Tasha Marshall, in the gameâ??s final 62 seconds that was responsible for the upset.
â??Weâ??re trying to get Maggie to understand what she can do with the ball in her hands,â? Lebanon coach Tracey Hammel said of her 10th grade prodigy, who had a game-high 20 points, including 17 in the second half. â??I know Maggie got co-MVP and Dana (Reynolds, a 5â??7â? junior guard) was named to the All-Tournament team, but we had a lot of contributors.â?
Carmel (11-1), on the other hand, was sorely missing its main contributor, leading scorer Melanie Thornton. The 6-foot forward bound for Butler, who injured her ankle Dec. 16 in a 56-49 victory at two-time defending state champion North Central (Indianapolis), averages 12.8 points and 5.8 rebounds a game.
The loss spoiled a wonderful opportunity for the Greyhounds to compete a remarkable 2-2-3-5 victory sweep â??? all in games away from home. After winning 49-46 at then-No. 5 Kokomo, the Greyhounds beat then-No. 3 North Central by seven. Following their 75-62 Hall of Fame Classic morning victory over No. 2 Columbus East, the â??Hounds were poised to make it four huge wins in a row with a win against Lebanon.
But the Tigers, a 58-45 winner over 4A No. 5 Castle in the second semifinal, had other plans â??? despite 20 turnovers in the championship tilt.
Twelve of those turnovers came in the first half, when Lebanon was an abysmal 1 of 7 from 3-point range yet trailed only 23-19 at the break. Carmel failed to capitalize on the Tigersâ?? slow start by managing only 29 percent shooting (7 of 24) from the floor in the first half, when Lebanon owned a 19-11 rebounding edge.
â??Defensively, we stepped it up,â? Hammel said. â??The girls did a great job rebounding (a 41-25 advantage for the game), and we made â??em start their offense out higher, which they did to us in the first half.
â??The ball just bounced the right way in the fourth quarter.â?
Did it ever. On the brink of self-destruction in the third period with turnover #15 and a 32-23 deficit, the Tigers somehow managed to stay within four at the break before heating up in the fourth, when Lebanon outscored Carmel 23-15.
â??Those four seniors were not gonna lose,â? Hammel said of substitute guard Breanna Burtner (four rebounds), center Rachel Faust (four rebounds, three steals), forward Catherine Lyons (six rebounds), and guard Missy Holloman (six rebounds, five assists, and 12 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter).
Boyer opened the offensive flurry with a pair of free throws (she hit all eight of her attempts on the night and entered Classic play at 90 percent) to cut Carmelâ??s lead to 37-35. A Reynolds jumper on a nice pass from Holloman and a pair of Holloman free throws gave Lebanon its first lead since 13-11 at 39-37 with 6:08 remaining.
But two free throws from senior guard Jessica Janssen and a layin by freshman guard Chrissy Steffen put Carmel back on top, 41-39, at the 5:06 mark. It would be the last time the Greyhounds led.
A jumper by Holloman tied it at 41, then Boyerâ??s huge 3-pointer with 4:40 to go made it 44-41 and hastened a timeout from Carmel coach Scott Bowen. The Greyhounds missed 3-pointers on subsequent possessions but were able to pull within one at 44-43 with 3:07 left when sophomore forward Danielle Havel â??? the co-most valuable player along with Boyer â??? hit a pair of free throws.
(Amazingly, this game saw both teams combine to go 31 for 35 from the line in the second half as Lebanon was 16 for 19 and Carmel went 15 for 16.)
Holloman answered with a drive right down the middle of the lane that put the Tigers back up, 46-43. But a three-point possession by Carmel tied it at 46 when freshman center Lauren McRoberts hit a free throw, then Janssen was fouled after a rebound and made both of her free throws.
Again Holloman answered, this time with a bank shot. But a Havel layin at the other end knotted it up at 48 with 1:43 to go. Then it was turnover, turnover, turnover, and missed 3 before a foul set up the Boyer & Marshall Free Throw Show with 1:02.
Boyerâ??s one-and-bonus clutch freebies gave Lebanon the lead again at 50-48. Carmel then made a monumental boo-boo near midcourt at the :46.1 mark when senior guard Stacia Shepherdâ??s pass zigged right as Janssen zagged, the turnover giving Lebanon â??? now in the double bonus â??? the service advantage it would not relinquish.
Marshall was fouled and hit both throws for a four-point lead before Shepherd atoned for the errant pass by hitting both ends of the one-and-bonus, and it was 52-50 with :32.8 left. Boyer then did an excellent job of dribbling off some clock while weaving through the entire Carmel team before dishing to Marshall, who sank both free throws to make it 54-50 at the :18.5 mark.
Janssen missed a bunny at the other end but was fouled on her putback effort, rolling in both free throws to cut it to two with :11.1 on the clock. Boyer then once again dribbled through traffic magnificently before being fouled at :04.7 and, after a Carmel timeout to ice her, calmly swished both charity shots for the dagger.
â??With the ball in her hands, sheâ??s very confident,â? said Hammel, who also got double-digit scoring from Marshall with 12 points.
Janssenâ??s 16 points led Carmel. Havel added 15 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
All-Tournament Team boasts some impressive numbers
Co-MVPs Boyer (35 points total) and Havel (17 points and 11 rebounds in the opener, 15 and eight in the final) each had a teammate named to the prestigious All-Tournament Team. Carmel senior guard Kristin Craig was one of three Greyhounds to score 17 points in their earlier win over Columbus East, while Reynolds posted a team-high 18 points in Lebanonâ??s afternoon win over Castle.
That final game foursome was joined by Castle junior forward Jasmine Ussery (a Classic-high 24 points and game-high 10 rebounds in the opener and game highs of 17 points and 11 rebounds in the nightcap) and Columbus East senior guard Rachel Nolting (a combined 34 points).
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