(December 11th, 2014) – WEST UNITY: It was the performance of Erik Stripe that made all the difference in the Cadets’ big win against rival North Central.
The 5’10” senior from Hilltop put up 28 points against their hated neighbors to the north. That total was propelled by 4 successful three-point attempts, though he was as deadly from inside the arc as he was from the outside. Stripe was also responsible for 2 steals, an assist, and a rebound as well.
Jalen Towers added a normally impressive 19 points to the Cadet victory total, also pulling down 10 boards to earn a double-double on the evening. Tim Maneval contributed another 12 points to go along with his 5 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 assist. In fact, all 8 players to see time for Hilltop registered a field goal in the contest.
With all of this scoring, the Cadets were able to pull away from a determined Eagles team in the second half, winning the game 77-62.
It’s not as though North Central had issues scoring. Of the 6 players that received minutes in the contest, 5 of them had double digit totals on the evening. They were led by senior Jordan Bailey, who scored 16 points against the Cadet defense. Ethan Douglas, a junior, put up 12 points. Another senior, Jordan Reeves, earned 11 points by driving the ball to the basket. Fellow senior Josh Sawyer used his 2 three-point field goals to pump his production up to 10 points. Sophomore Steven Williams also totaled 10 points.
Size was an issue for the Eagles. With no player standing over 6 feet tall, the guard-oriented team settled for too many jump shots, particularly those from three-point range. North Central shot for just 15% from beyond the arc, taking 20 attempts from long range. When they did drive to the basket, the Eagle boys actually did pretty well, making 47% of their 32 shots from close and mid-range. The team shot 34% from the floor overall.
Hilltop did most of their damage from inside the arc, connecting on 57% of their attempts from the enclosed area. When they did shoot threes, however, they did so quite well, putting 41% of their shots through the bottom of the net. As a unit, the Cadets made 53% of their total field goals.
In an unusual statistic, the Eagles turned the ball over significantly less than their counterparts from Hilltop. North Central actually protected the ball extremely well, committing just 8 turnovers. Hilltop was a bit sloppy with the ball, making 18 possession-costing errors. Typically, such a wide turnover margin leads to good things for those who value the basketball.
Winning the rebounding war helped rectify the Cadets’ turnover woes, however. Hilltop used their size to pull in 10 more boards than the shorter Eagles team. With 36 rebounds to North Central’s 26, the hometown Cadets ensured that they were getting the ball after most missed shots.
Size and depth had a strong impact on this rivalry game. But it was the standout playing of Erik Stripe that pushed Hilltop out of North Central’s reach.