BUCYRUS — Colonel Crawford may have had its 58-game regular season win streak broken last month, but the Eagles’ momentum remains intact.
Bucyrus — as has been the case much of the second half of the season — played Colonel Crawford much better than the first meeting in the first half.
But the Eagles forced nine Redmen turnovers in the third quarter to fuel a 26-point period and ran away from Bucyrus, 71-37, in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game at Alex Kish Memorial Gymnasium.
“They came out in a zone and I thought we attacked it,” Colonel Crawford coach David Sheldon said. “But defensively, we weren’t as good, I thought in the first half as we could have been. In the second half, we turned them over and we were able to get out in transition and get some easy ones and I thought that was the key to breaking it open in the third quarter.”
Bucyrus (2-11, 0-9 N10) stayed close in the first quarter, trailing just 17-13 after one. Thanks to six Eagles’ turnovers in the second quarter, the Redmen were able to stay within striking distance at halftime, trailing 31-19.
“Compared to the last time we played them (a 75-26 loss at North Robinson), I was proud of our first half,” Bucyrus coach Scott Gifford said. “If we make our layups, it’s a different first half. If we make our layups the whole game, it’s a closer game.”
Malachi Bayless scored 10 of his 17 points in the first half for the Redmen. But Braxton Baker had 14 of his 22 in the first two quarters and Trevor Vogt added nine for the Eagles to give Colonel Crawford (12-3, 7-1) the 12-point cushion at intermission.
“Malachi’s a good player. He’s a really good player,” Sheldon said. “He’s been playing since he was a freshman. He can put the ball on the floor. He has great range. We tried to coddle him every time he put it on the floor.”
“He took some good shots. He took some that were not so good,” Gifford said. “That’s him just being a competitor and trying to win. We’ve got some other guys scoring in practice. They’ve just got to get the confidence to do it in games. That comes with more playing, more experience. Once that happens, it will take some of the pressure off Malachi.”
The third quarter was decisive. The Eagles scored the first 20 points of the second half to blow it open. Five different Colonel Crawford players scored in the run.
“We’ve seen that with them,” Sheldon said of the Redmen demise in the third quarter. “They’ve played a lot of people close — in the second half of the year — in the first half and it kind of breaks open in the second half.”
“We take long threes, making long rebounds leading to transition for the other team,” Gifford said. “So, we have to be smart with our shot selection.”
Sheldon was able to get time for his bench players in the fourth quarter. Gabe Thew led the way, coming off the bench to score eight points.
The Eagles had three players in double figures. Baker led the way with 22, Vogt had 14 and Jacob Maddy added 11 along with a team-high eight rebounds.
“Anytime you win by 30 some, you take it and move on,” Sheldon said. “I was a little worried about a letdown after two good non-league wins over Lucas and Fredericktown.”
Bayless led Bucyrus with 17 points and Jackson Farrar had six. Randy Banks grabbed four rebounds.
“Their second chance opportunities hurt us and any 50-50 ball, we didn’t get it,” Gifford said. “So, they were tougher than us tonight and that’s what’s disappointing to me.”
“We have six (league) games left — four on the road and only two at home,” Sheldon said. “It’s a gauntlet. Parity — I haven’t seen it like this in years. So, every night, you’ve got to bring it. You enjoy this, but it’s back to work tomorrow.
Box score
Colonel Crawford 17 14 26 14 — 71
Bucyrus 13 6 5 13 — 37
Colonel Crawford (12-3, 7-1 N10): Shots 24-47; 3-pt. shots4-15 (Braxton Baker 3, Trevor Vogt); Free throws 19-27; Rebounds 36 (Jacob Maddy 8); Turnovers 12. Scoring: Gabe Thew 3 2 8, Trevor Vogt 4 5 14, Ethan Holt 2 0 4, Derek Horsley 3 2 8, Braxton Baker 8 3 22, Jacob Maddy 3 5 11, Ryan McMichael 0 1 1, Payne DeGray 1 1 3.
Bucyrus (2-11, 0-9 N10): Shots 14-42; 3-pt. shots 2-12 (Malachi Bayless 2); Free throws 7-10; Rebounds 16 (Randy Banks 4); Turnovers 18. Scoring: Kam Lewis 2 1 5, Blayne Barto 1 0 2, Noah Burke 1 3 5, Jackson Farrar 3 0 6, Kavan Combs 1 0 2, Malachi Bayless 6 3 17.
JV: Colonel Crawford 36-8.