MORRAL — Double-win weekends have been at premium in recent years for Bucyrus.
After defeating Buckeye Central on Friday for their first Northern 10 Athletic Conference win, the Redmen envisioned accomplishing the fete at Ridgedale on Saturday.
The vision became a reality. After taking the lead at 8-7 midway through the first period, the Redmen never trailed again on their way to a 69-57 non-league victory over the Rockets.
Bucyrus, playing with a short bench, maneuvered around foul trouble in the foul-plagued contest. The teams combined to shoot 54 free throws.
“The roster was small tonight. We were kind of handcuffed with minutes,” Bucyrus coach Brian Hargis said. “We created all the adversity tonight. We created the foul trouble and that’s something we’re trying to change. We’re trying not to react; we’re trying to anticipate.”
It started early, as the Redmen were whistled for seven fouls in the first quarter alone. Even so, Bucyrus (3-8) built a 25-14 lead after one quarter. Demarius Munn-Page and Malachi Bayless each scored eight points to help the cause.
Seven more fouls on the Redmen allowed Ridgedale (6-5) to climb back into the game in the second period.
The Redmen led by 16 with 3:34 left in the half on a basket by Georgie Floyd. But the Rockets closed out the period on a 16-2 run to get back within two, 37-35 at intermission.
“We let them get a big lead there, and then, we went with a little bit different lineup,” Ridgedale coach Mike Mathey said. “Those guys were able to bring us back and cut it to 2 by halftime.”
Kayden Kraviec, Wayne Fleming, and Billy Wren came off the bench to combine for 13 of the Rockets’ 21 second-quarter points.
The biggest scare for Bucyrus was that Bayless picked up his fourth foul with just over a minute left in the first half, forcing Hargis to sit his leading scorer from then through the third quarter.
“When Malachi went out, the young guards were kind of deer in the headlights there for a minute,” Hargis said. “But we had a break at intermission, and they responded well — minimal turnovers, and they were getting to the paint and creating.”
Not only did the youngsters hold their own in the third quarter sans Bayless, but they increased the lead slightly to 55-50 after three. Munn-Page scored nine of his 17 points in the frame.
“It was kind of the same thing in the second half,” Mathey said. “They got a nice lead in the third quarter when Malachi was out, and we brought it back. We just couldn’t get over the hump.”
Bayless returned in the fourth quarter and managed to avoid the disqualifying fifth foul. Ridgedale was within three, at 59-56, with 4:24 left on a free throw by Michael Deas. But the Redmen closed the game out on a 10-1 run to come away with the win.
Bayless topped Bucyrus with a game-high 19 points to go with Munn-Page’s 17. Noah Burke had a double double with 10 points and 14 rebounds.
“We’re still giving up points at a little higher rate than I would like to,” Hargis said. “I think we rely on our offense a little bit too much. We rely on the Mali spark a little too much.”
Eric Gottfried led the Rockets with 16 points and Wayne Fleming added 12. Evan Ricketts had wight points and 15 rebounds — 11 on the offensive end. Both coaches were impressed with Ricketts’ effort on the glass.
“He did real well. He’s a rebounding machine, high energy, nice athlete, plays his butt off,” Mathey said. “He had a good game. I would have liked to have seen some of those shots fall.”
“The Ricketts kid — for a sophomore, he works hard,” Hargis said. “We kind of evened it out in the fourth quarter, kind of kept him off the glass. Before that, he was the main factor keeping them in it.”
In a mutual admiration society, Mathey was and has been impressed with Bayless.
“Malachi — I’m not going to be sad to see him go,” Mathey said. “He’s a tough player. His eyes light up when he plays us. He’s a nice player. He’s great off the dribble, he moves without the ball, he knows where to go. You just look at some guys and you realize they’re a basketball player and he’s a basketball player through and through.”
Hargis would like to build on the two-win weekend.
“We have decent momentum, but I think this week of practice wil tell us how ready we are for Seneca (East),” Hargis said. “They smacked us by (23). I’m ready for the get-back and I’m hoping my boys will get a little healthier this week.”
The rematch of that 76-53 beatdown from Dec. 8 will take place Saturday night. Hargis would like a good turnout for a couple reasons — Bucyrus is naming the court at Alex Kish Memorial Gymnasium for long-time coach Phil Joseph and to see the leading scorer in school history.
“We want the people to come out. Saturday night is a big night for the basketball program, it’s a big night for Coach Joseph. We have a lot of alumni coming back, we’ve got the school’s leading scorer (Bayless). He just set the (single game) scoring record. If you haven’t seen him, come out and see him before he’s gone.”
Bucyrus 25 12 18 14 — 69
Ridgedale 14 21 15 5 — 57
Stats
Bucyrus (3-8): Shots 25-49; 3-pt. shots 4-12 (Malachi Bayless 3, Georgie Floyd); Free throws 15-22; Rebounds 40 (Noah Burke 14); Turnovers 12. Scoring: Georgie Floyd 3 0 7, Demarius Munn-Page 5 7 17, Noah Burke 3 4 10, Jackson Farrar 2 0 4, Malachi Bayless 8 0 19, Tyrone Mass 1 4 6, Carson Witten 3 0 6.
Ridgedale (6-5): Shots 17-67; 3-pt. shots 3-17 (Eric Gottfried, Brogan Weston, Kayden Kraviec); Free throws 20-32; Rebounds 43 (Evan Ricketts 15); Turnovers 9. Scoring: Landon Murphy 1 1 3, Wayne Fleming 5 2 12, Billy Wren 1 1 3, Eric Gottfried 3 9 16, Michael 0 3 3, Brogan Weston 1 0 3, Devin Buckley 0 1 1, Evan Ricketts 4 0 8, Vince Shuster 0 1 1, Kayden Kraviec 2 2 7.
JV: Ridgedale 47-31.