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Indians slow down Pretzels in PSC showdown, 34-23
The Pawnee Indians, who have relied on a tough defense all season, came up with their best effort of the year Tuesday in a
34-23 Prairie State Conference win at New Berlin.
The Indians, who split four games and finished sixth at the Waverly Tourney, went to 7-3 overall and 2-1 in the PSC with
Tuesday's win.
Jon Schrage and J.D. Vandenberg scored eight points each to pace Pawnee. Jordan Day netted seven, Justin Seibt hit five and
Drew Thompson, Michael Shepherd and Seth Nelson all scored two. Grant Pelletier, a 5-9 senior guard, was the sole offensive
threat for the Pretzels, scoring 17 of their 23 points.
Pawnee held a slight 23-21 edge in rebounds, led by five from Vandenberg, four each by Nelson and Thompson and three
each by Shepherd and Day. The Indians had 14 turnovers to 21 for the Pretzels (4-9).
Neither team shot well, with Pawnee hitting 12 of 34 from the field to the Pretzels' nine of 29. PHS trailed 2-1 in 3-pointers but
made nine of 11 free throws to New Berlin's three of eight.
Early on, it was Pawnee who struggled to score. The Indians fell behind 6-2 and went over four minutes without a point before
two Thompson free throws and a short jumper by Shepherd earned a 6-6 tie after one frame.
Schrage's basket gave the Indians their first lead but in the low scoring affair, Pawnee needed two Vandenberg free throws
(2:04) and a fast break basket by Schrage (1:13) to keep the game tied at 12-12. New Berlin held for the final 1:10 and worked
Pelletier open for a 3-pointer that was good, giving the Pretzels the 15-12 halftime edge.
But the Indians would shut down the Pretzels in the 3rd quarter, and nearly shut them out as New Berlin went without a point
until a layup by Devan Rogers with :12 remaining. In the quarter, the Pretzels took just three shots, making one, had no rebounds
and committed eight turnovers.
Baskets by Nelson, off a Day assist, and Day regained the lead for good at 16-15. Despite a flurry where the Indians missed four
straight close-in shots, Day stole the ball away and scored, was fouled and completed the three-point play to make it 19-15 with
4:24 left. Vandenberg scored twice, once on a Day assist, and Vandenberg's interception led to a short jumper by Seibt. New
Berlin avoided the scoreless quarter on Rogers' driving layup but PHS got the points back plus one as Seibt took Day's pass and
drained a 3-pointer at the horn for a 28-17 lead.
New Berlin got as close as 28-21 on a Pelletier free throw with 5:28 remaining but two free throws by Vandenberg (4:35) and a
patient possession capped by Day's baseline drive (2:27) pushed the lead back to 32-21.
Through their first ten games, the Indians are allowing their opponents only 37.3 points per game and the 23 points was their
best mark so far. The most points Pawnee has allowed came in the 51-43 loss to Girard.
WAVERLY TOURNEY
Day scored only one basket but it proved to be the biggest one of the game as Pawnee edged Kincaid 35-34 in the fifth place
bracket semifinals at Waverly.
Day hit a 15-foot jumper with :13 remaining in the game to give the Indians the margin of victory. The Ponies had two shots at
the potential game-winner in the final five seconds but both missed.
Vandenberg's 10 points led the Indians, who trailed 3-2 in 3-pointers and made just one of four free throws. Schrage had eight,
including both 3-point baskets, followed by Seibt with seven, Nelson with six and two each from Thompson and Day. Zach
Hanlon of Kincaid led all scorers with 13 points.
The teams ended three quarters deadlocked at 26-26, after the Indians had led 11-8 after one quarter and 18-15 at the half.
Pawnee was the No. 6 seed as picked by the coaches at Waverly and that's where the Indians wound up, after losing 47-37 to
West Central in the fifth place game.
Thompson had one of his best offensive games with 15 points, matching Josh Peak of West Central for scoring honors.
Schrage had eight, Vandenberg netted six and Shepherd and Day tossed in four apiece. Schrage had two 3-pointers and
Thompson had one.
The Indians fell into an early hole and were lucky to only be trailing 7-4 after one quarter. After Schrage's trey cut the gap to 9-7,
West Central scored seven straight points and would take a 23-15 edge to the locker room. Baskets by Thompson and
Vandenberg made it 25-19 but the Cougars followed with a 6-0 run and still led 32-23 after three.
Pawnee trailed 40-29 before Vandenberg's basket, and back-to-back threes by Thompson and Schrage narrowed the deficit to
41-37 in the final minute. But the Indians could get no closer as WC's Dylan Guthrie would sink six straight foul shots down the
stretch.
Pawnee will host Palmyra Northwestern Friday in an MSM Conference game, a final tuneup for the County Tournament, which
starts Monday. Pawnee, the No. 5 seed, will play No. 4 Rochester Monday at 7:30 p.m.
The Pawnee Indians, who have relied on a tough defense all season, came up with their best effort of the year Tuesday in a
34-23 Prairie State Conference win at New Berlin.
The Indians, who split four games and finished sixth at the Waverly Tourney, went to 7-3 overall and 2-1 in the PSC with
Tuesday's win.
Jon Schrage and J.D. Vandenberg scored eight points each to pace Pawnee. Jordan Day netted seven, Justin Seibt hit five and
Drew Thompson, Michael Shepherd and Seth Nelson all scored two. Grant Pelletier, a 5-9 senior guard, was the sole offensive
threat for the Pretzels, scoring 17 of their 23 points.
Pawnee held a slight 23-21 edge in rebounds, led by five from Vandenberg, four each by Nelson and Thompson and three
each by Shepherd and Day. The Indians had 14 turnovers to 21 for the Pretzels (4-9).
Neither team shot well, with Pawnee hitting 12 of 34 from the field to the Pretzels' nine of 29. PHS trailed 2-1 in 3-pointers but
made nine of 11 free throws to New Berlin's three of eight.
Early on, it was Pawnee who struggled to score. The Indians fell behind 6-2 and went over four minutes without a point before
two Thompson free throws and a short jumper by Shepherd earned a 6-6 tie after one frame.
Schrage's basket gave the Indians their first lead but in the low scoring affair, Pawnee needed two Vandenberg free throws
(2:04) and a fast break basket by Schrage (1:13) to keep the game tied at 12-12. New Berlin held for the final 1:10 and worked
Pelletier open for a 3-pointer that was good, giving the Pretzels the 15-12 halftime edge.
But the Indians would shut down the Pretzels in the 3rd quarter, and nearly shut them out as New Berlin went without a point
until a layup by Devan Rogers with :12 remaining. In the quarter, the Pretzels took just three shots, making one, had no rebounds
and committed eight turnovers.
Baskets by Nelson, off a Day assist, and Day regained the lead for good at 16-15. Despite a flurry where the Indians missed four
straight close-in shots, Day stole the ball away and scored, was fouled and completed the three-point play to make it 19-15 with
4:24 left. Vandenberg scored twice, once on a Day assist, and Vandenberg's interception led to a short jumper by Seibt. New
Berlin avoided the scoreless quarter on Rogers' driving layup but PHS got the points back plus one as Seibt took Day's pass and
drained a 3-pointer at the horn for a 28-17 lead.
New Berlin got as close as 28-21 on a Pelletier free throw with 5:28 remaining but two free throws by Vandenberg (4:35) and a
patient possession capped by Day's baseline drive (2:27) pushed the lead back to 32-21.
Through their first ten games, the Indians are allowing their opponents only 37.3 points per game and the 23 points was their
best mark so far. The most points Pawnee has allowed came in the 51-43 loss to Girard.
WAVERLY TOURNEY
Day scored only one basket but it proved to be the biggest one of the game as Pawnee edged Kincaid 35-34 in the fifth place
bracket semifinals at Waverly.
Day hit a 15-foot jumper with :13 remaining in the game to give the Indians the margin of victory. The Ponies had two shots at
the potential game-winner in the final five seconds but both missed.
Vandenberg's 10 points led the Indians, who trailed 3-2 in 3-pointers and made just one of four free throws. Schrage had eight,
including both 3-point baskets, followed by Seibt with seven, Nelson with six and two each from Thompson and Day. Zach
Hanlon of Kincaid led all scorers with 13 points.
The teams ended three quarters deadlocked at 26-26, after the Indians had led 11-8 after one quarter and 18-15 at the half.
Pawnee was the No. 6 seed as picked by the coaches at Waverly and that's where the Indians wound up, after losing 47-37 to
West Central in the fifth place game.
Thompson had one of his best offensive games with 15 points, matching Josh Peak of West Central for scoring honors.
Schrage had eight, Vandenberg netted six and Shepherd and Day tossed in four apiece. Schrage had two 3-pointers and
Thompson had one.
The Indians fell into an early hole and were lucky to only be trailing 7-4 after one quarter. After Schrage's trey cut the gap to 9-7,
West Central scored seven straight points and would take a 23-15 edge to the locker room. Baskets by Thompson and
Vandenberg made it 25-19 but the Cougars followed with a 6-0 run and still led 32-23 after three.
Pawnee trailed 40-29 before Vandenberg's basket, and back-to-back threes by Thompson and Schrage narrowed the deficit to
41-37 in the final minute. But the Indians could get no closer as WC's Dylan Guthrie would sink six straight foul shots down the
stretch.
Pawnee will host Palmyra Northwestern Friday in an MSM Conference game, a final tuneup for the County Tournament, which
starts Monday. Pawnee, the No. 5 seed, will play No. 4 Rochester Monday at 7:30 p.m.
Issue Date: Jan. 7, 2010
