NORTH ROBINSON — Colonel Crawford had a pretty solid 24 hours of basketball. After a 62-47 victory over Northern 10 Athletic Conference rival Seneca East the Eagles returned home Saturday night and picked up a 60-36 win over Cardington.
Led by junior post Payne DeGray’s 25 points and 11 rebounds, the Eagles moved to 8-1 overall and 5-1 in league play.
“This was a tough weekend. Last night Seneca East was 6-2 and tonight Cardington was 6-1. It was a big weekend for our guys,” said Colonel Crawford head coach David Sheldon. “To go on the road last night and tonight against an explosive Cardington team that averages four guys in double figures. I was proud of our guys’ effort the entire weekend.”
The hosts took a 17-13 lead after one quarter with DeGray netting eight points. The Pirates’ Journey Williamson had three of his team-high 13 points, the only Cardington player in double figures.
The Eagles struggled in the second quarter, managing just four points, as Cardington grabbed a 22-21 halftime lead.
“The first half we started the way we were supposed to,” Pirates head coach Jason Rice said. “They forced things down low in the second half and they got guys open. We just didn’t execute our game plan.
“Colonel Crawford is a great team. Sheldon’s ran a great program since I was in high school. Payne hurt us. Our big thing all year has been not to let 6-foot-5 guys get 20-plus on us.”
DeGray did his damage despite sitting for 4:34 in the second quarter with two fouls.
The trademark Eagles defense rose up in the third quarter, outscoring their Morrow County opponent 20-2 and putting the game out of reach.
Kaden Bruner drained two of his three 3s on the night in that period. Payne DeGray added eight and John DeGray added four points.
“The first half our defense was good. But we were upset because they were getting second shots off the offensive glass. In the second half they didn’t get second shots. KB hit some big 3s for us,” Sheldon said.
“In the first half we got great looks, and they just didn’t go. We did a great job of feeding Payne in there. We can’t forget about the big guy. He’s just a workhorse. But Kaden’s 3s were huge.”
Again, Crawford hangs its hat on defense.
“Defensively, it’s our physicalness and we talk about one possession at a time, our way, in our program. We’re battling defensively on every possession. To hold them to 36 total is an impressive feat.”
Cardington has a roster of all seniors.
“They have two of the premier guards, averaging 18 and 17, and you look tonight A.J. Brehm had seven and Warren Garrison, their other big scorer, had five. Just the preparation and the phenomenal job defensively by the entire team.”
Sophomore John DeGray finished with 12 points and six rebounds and Brayden Holt added 11, three steals and a pair of assists.
“I’ve rode John hard for a month and a half; he’s a puppy. He’s risen to the occasion. Last night it was (Lucas) Bordner. Tonight, it was Brehm. And offensively he’s explosive with his athleticism. Two games in a row in double figures. He’s really coming along. He’s a nice combo next to Payne.”
Holt, a junior transfer from Wooster Triway, adds a mental as well as a physical dimension to the Crawford squad.
“Everybody looks at the scorebook, but he runs our show,” Sheldon said.
“His IQ. He leads our league in assists (5.4 per game). He finds guys and creates open 3s for guys and he gets the dump off passes to the DeGrays inside. He’s the quarterback on our basketball floor and facilitates them where they need to be.”
The Eagles visit Wynford next Saturday in an N10 and county rivalry game.
“We’ve got some tough kids. They came out of a long football season, and they hit the ground running,” Sheldon said.
Cardington visits Pleasant on Monday in another non-conference game. After that it’s KMAC rivals East Knox and Centerburg awaiting.
“We were 2-1 during the Christmas break. It’s all a big test for us. We can’t have three or four guys doing what they’re supposed to and one or two not,” Rice said.
“They’re a very athletic group. We’ve done this for three years now. When we get out and make stops, we’re really good. The defense has to travel. The offense doesn’t always travel.”
Box score
Cardington 13 9 2 12 — 36
Colonel Crawford 17 4 20 19 — 60
Cardington (6-2): Shots 13-40; 3-pt. shots 4-16 (Journey Williamson 3, Denton Garrison); Free throws 5-6; Rebounds 19 (Warren Garrison 3, Brayden Lackey 3); Turnovers 8. Scoring: Denton Garrison 1 0 3, Kalin Briggs 1 0 2, Journey Williamson 5 0 13, A.J. Brehm 1 5 7, Warren Garrison 2 1 5, Zay Nippert 1 0 2, Brayden Lackey 2 0 4.
Colonel Crawford (8-1): Shots 25-44; 3-pt. shots 4-20 (Kaden Bruner 3, Parker Weithman); Free throws 6-8; Rebounds 29 (Payne DeGray 11); Turnovers 11. Scoring: Parker Weithman 1 0 3, John DeGray 6 0 12, Brayden Holt 5 1 11, Kaden Bruner 3 0 9, Payne DeGray 10 5 25.