BB: 4A #3 Cathedral escapes opener with 51-50 win at Warren Central

By E. Shawn Aylsworth
Managing Editor

INDIANAPOLIS – One got the feeling heading into the heart of the fourth quarter of the Dec. 5 boys basketball clash between Indianapolis Cathedral and host Warren Central that the Class 4A third-ranked Fighting Irish just might end up giving away their season-opening game that featured a pair of coaches that were former Indiana All-Stars.

The Irish held Warren Central to 30-percent shooting in the opening half while hitting 44 percent themselves in twice building 13-point leads, yet they enjoyed only an eight-point halftime spread at 30-22.

Four straight third-quarter possessions that resulted in layups or dunks by Cathedral’s talented 6’6” senior duo of forward Errick Peck and guard Kelsey Barlow pushed a six-point lead back to 11, but a 6-0 run by the Warriors got them back within 40-33 after three quarters of plays.

And while 6’1” senior guard Patrick Paligraf hit jumpers on the Irish’s first two possessions of the fourth quarter, Cathedral’s aforementioned big guns scored nary a bucket in a final period that saw Warren Central barnstorm back from a 48-39 deficit with just over four minutes to play to actually having an open shot to win the game just ahead of the final buzzer.

But like on so many other of Warren Central’s attempted jump shots on this night – the Warriors were a horrid 4 of 25 for the game on jumpers, including a trio of airballed 3-point attempts – 6’3” junior guard Willie Rhodes’ 3-pointer from the left corner was off the mark.

The improbable Warrior comeback thus fell just short as Cathedral escaped Indianapolis’ far-eastside with a 51-50 victory.

“Them changing their defense (from man-to-man to zone) took us out of our rhythm, and we got complacent,” said Cathedral coach Scott Hicks, the 1983 Indiana All-Star now in his ninth season back leading his alma mater. “But we kept our composure, and I’m proud of how we battled.”

Just down the sideline, first-year Warren Central coach Greg Graham – the 1989 Indiana All-Star and former Indiana University standout now back at his alma mater – was pleased with how his team responded to frigid shooting (32 percent from the field, 44 percent from the foul line) and those double-digit deficits.

“This team is mentally tough, and they want to win,” said Graham, who won his coaching debut Nov. 29 with a 73-66 win at 2006 4A state champion East Chicago Central. “They could have easily laid down and lost to Cathedral by 20.

“But I told them that heart and defense would get ‘em back in the game. I didn’t expect it to end up like that, but I expected it to be a hard-fought game.”

This one had all the makings of a blowout when Cathedral scored baskets on five of its first six-second quarter possessions to go up 25-12. When Barlow sank a pair of free throws on Warren Central 6’9” senior center Ed Hazelett’s third foul with 1:04 to play in the half, the lead again had grown to a baker’s dozen at 29-16.

“Hazelett is a tremendous player, and our guys had a game plan to try to contain him,” said Hicks, whose Irish limited the big fella to 11 points and benefited from Hazelett’s 1-of-4 effort at the stripe.

Despite nine first-half turnovers, the Irish were controlling the action by taking much better shots and hitting a far better percentage of them. But the Warriors rallied with a 6-1 run, including a layup off a gorgeous double-crossover dribble by 5’8” senior guard Jordan Kennedy, to cut it to eight at intermission.

Four third-quarter possessions that ended with a Peck putback, a Barlow layin, another Barlow layin, and a Peck slam dunk moved a Cathedral six-point lead to 11 at 38-27. But the Irish misfired on three of their final four shots in the period and tallied only two points over the stanza’s final four-plus minutes, allowing a driving bucket and a hanging jumper from 6’4” senior swingman Derrick Spight to cut the gap to 40-33 leading to the fourth.

Paligraf hit the first two buckets of the final period for Cathedral, but the Irish were just 2 of 7 from the floor the rest of the way – both buckets coming on drives by 5’8” senior guard Jarrett Hamilton. Cathedral led 48-39 with just under five minutes to play, but its next five possessions ended in turnover, offensive foul, blocked shot, turnover, and missed bunny/turnover before mercifully reaching the one-and-bonus.

During that span, Warren Central crept back within striking distance on a Hazelett layin, a Spight free throw, and a long-awaited successful 3-pointer with 58.2 seconds left from Rhodes. That made it 48-45, setting a rowdy crowd up for a furious finish.

Paligraf was fouled and hit both shots at :50.1, but Warren answered on a layin by 6’2” junior guard Demetrius Cowherd at :34.5. Hamilton then missed the front end of the bonus with 31.3 seconds left, and the warriors appeared to be out of luck when Spight also missed the front end at :18.7.

But 6’5” senior forward Javon Brown snagged the rebound, and Barlow fouled Spight with 14.2 seconds to play. This time, Spight drained both the freebies to make it a one-point game at 50-49.

Paligraf was unintentionally popped in the face on a scramble for the inbounds pass, sending him to the stripe at :13.2. Though he hit the first shot before coming up short on the second, Paligraf appeared to be off the hook when Spight’s jumper in the paint to tie was blocked by Cathedral 6’9” junior forward Kevin Owens.

But what looked like a clean swat but ruled a foul on Owens, sending Spight back to the stripe with an even six seconds remaining. Spight hit the first but missed the second, yet the rebound was tied up with the possession arrow pointing to the Warriors.

After a timeout with 4.9 seconds to go, Rhodes’ three from the left corner was off the mark. At long last, Cathedral could breathe again.

Each team has three scorers reach double digits. Peck led all players with 14 points, while Paligraf added 12 and Barlow 10 for the Irish. Spight had a team-high 12 points for the Warriors, whose Brown joined Hazelett in double digits with 11.

Next up for Cathedral is a Dec. 6 clash at Indianapolis Broad Ripple (1-1). Warren Central is off till Dec. 11, when the Warriors travel to Fishers (2-1).