Sunday, March 13, 2011

Panthers define 'team effort,' in Final Four again

By Rex Kirts

In a crisis situation, juniors Trae Washington and Michael Bower hustled off the bench and saved South's season Saturday.
Leader Dee Davis went to the bench with four fouls late in the third quarter. The Panthers' lead had shrunk to six in the regional championship game against Castle. It was a perilous time for the Purple.
Washington, Bower and Ben Stowell calmed the fear, however, and because each scored in the final minutes of the quarter South's lead rocketed back up to 12 by the end of the period.
It was the key moment in what became a 68-49 win and helped send South (24-2) to the Final Four for the fourth time in the last six years.
THERE WAS ANOTHER singular key moment in the game, Spencer Turner's 60-foot basket to end the half. Castle had crept back to within four points, but Turner's launch returned momentum to South heading into the second half with a 37-30 lead.
Castle put up a stiff fight until very late. The Panthers had no such challenge from New Albany in the morning game, being dismantled, 53-37, as 25-point scorer Davis got great board help from Joey Forney and Desmond Marks.
Davis said, that while he would rather have been on the court, he was "excited" about seeing Washington, Bower and Stowell contribute in a big way at a crucial time.
"I was thinking I didn't need to go back in if they kept playing that way," Davis grinned. "I was happy to be a cheerleader.
"This (winning the regional) was a great experience. I've been here before, but I'm happy. This does not get old."
Davis started on the Panther team two years ago that went undefeated and won the state championship. He was MVP of the state finals game as a sophomore.
TURNER SAID his 60-foot basket to end the half against Castle was "all God" and felt the Panthers played well. He appreciated the production off the bench, too.
"Trae came in and played tremendous," Turner said. "It's tough, with a lot of pressure. He hit that pull-up jumper with five seconds left in the third quarter. And Bower got numerous rebounds and that layup."
Washington said, "We knew we had to make plays" with Davis sidelined. "Michael stepped, and Ben.
"I just tried to make up a fourth of what Dee does because he's too tough to replace."
Bower thought the whole thing was awesome.
"We just tried to do what our role is, what the coaches say," Bower said. "So awesome."
Stowell, who finished with nine points against Castle, said, "We just tried to fill the void of the guy who runs the show."
Marks had 10 rebounds and nine points against Castle.
"We won. It's a good feeling,"Marks smiled. "Trae stepped up, and Bower. And Stowell is unconscious most of the time (with his shooting). They did exactly what we needed them to do."
SOUTH JUMPED OUT to quick leads and kept up the pressure by scoring quickly at the start of the other quarters in both games. The Panthers played with the lead all day. They rebounded well and played outstanding defense throughout.
Solid, solid, solid.
Individually, Davis continued to prove why he's one of the best basketball players ever from Bloomington, scoring 25 and 18 points. Turner threw in some long, long 3s and scored 17 in the title game.
But it was the team thing that will remain in memory for a long time.
"Somebody else has to step up besides the two big guns (Davis and Turner)," Panther coach J.R. Holmes said. "This morning we had 19 rebounds from Des and Joey, and tonight Trae, Bower and Ben stepped up. Everybody had a contribution to it."
And, like most Holmes-coached teams, there is resiliency and scrappiness, to go along with great ball movement and people movement.
Castle turned up the defensive pressure late with a trapping defense. Davis, the primary ball handler, was on the bench. The Panthers had some trouble at first but and adapted and prevailed.
"THERE WAS SOME TOUGHNESS down the stretch, once we got organized against their trap," Holmes said. "It was a good effort for us."
Another key to the win over Castle (22-3) was the defensive strategy. Instead of the strong, 6-5 Marks taking on 6-8 Eric Stutz, it was surprising to see the 6-4 Forney on him.
"We did that because Stutz goes out on the floor. He's a good 3-point shooter,"Holmes said. So Forney, who is more mobile than Marks but still strong, got the job.
"I was pretty nervous," Forney said of his assignment. "He has a lot of skills, and in warmups he was hitting 3s from the volleyball line. I just tried to contain him."
Stutz averages 22 points, but Forney and friends held him to eight before Stutz fouled out. Forney scored nine points.
Defensively, South had a great day, limiting New Albany to 31 per cent shooting and Castle 44.
The Panthers will take on Indianapolis North Central (22-2) in the semistate Saturday about 3 p.m. at Southport High School in Indianapolis.