BOYS BASKETBALL: Red Bud holds on to eliminate Du Quoin
Monday's back-and-forth ball game between Red Bud and Du Quoin was ultimately decided in the final minute, with the Musketeers holding on for a 68-61 victory over the Indians to advance into the semifinals of the Class 2A Nashville Boys Basketball Regional.
The Indians led at the half, the Musketeers fired back to take a six-point lead into the fourth quarter, and Du Quoin's Jacob Wright had a couple of pretty good looks from beyond the three-point arc late in the game that could have given DHS a shot at victory. Wright's triples were just off the mark, however, and foul trouble began to mount for the short-handed Indians.
"The foul trouble killed us," said Du Quoin head coach Wendell Wheeler, "having that many guys foul out when we needed them. The turnovers at bad times cost us. We just didn't get it done, we struggled."
Wright, Caleb Vogel and Tucker Kuhnert all fouled out in the fourth quarter for Du Quoin, which was already without A.J. Smith (mononucleosis) and Spencer Cook (Platelet-Rich Plasma treatment).
Brock Bullar's return on Monday night was a pleasant surprise for the Indians, and the sophomore poured in a game-high 19 points despite a heavily-taped left thumb.
"He showed pretty good character," Wheeler said. "He got released this afternoon to play. To have that type of dislocation and come back to play, I was proud of him."
The Musketeers looked to be in command of the game early after Dylan Roy's three-pointer to start the second quarter put Red Bud up 25-15.
But Bullar started to heat up shortly thereafter, hitting a pair of free throws, a three, and two additional field goals during a 13-1 run for the Indians, who took their first lead since 2-0 on Tucker Kuhnert's layup with 2:40 to go in the half.
Red Bud had moved back in front by four with a 6-0 spurt, but Kuhnert went to the hoop strong for a layup with 45 seconds to go, and Caleb Vogel converted an old-fashioned three-point play with just 1.1 seconds showing on the clock on a put-back, giving Du Quoin a 35-34 lead at the break.
Bullar hit a three to start the second half, but Red Bud answered with 14 straight points as the momentum swung their way once again.
The Indians trailed by ten early in the fourth quarter, but had another run left in them. Two late threes by Bullar and Camdon Mercier made it a two-point game with 1:08 to play.
Timothy Mehring missed two free throws at the other end for Red Bud, and that's when Wright got a decent look from the top of the key that would have given the Indians a one-point lead with under a minute to go. His shot rimmed out, Roy made two free throws, and Du Quoin couldn't find the bottom of the net again.
"(Wright) took a good three," Wheeler said, "it was a nice shot, we want him to take that shot."
"We were trying to get a win, we kept fighting and plugging. Every time we turn around, it seems like there's another obstacle to try and get past. Be it A.J. (Smith) and Cook being out, Brock's thumb, or four guys fouling out - every time we turn around, we're running into a wall. You've just got to make your own breaks."
A frustrating first year back with Du Quoin for Wheeler came to an end with only a pair of victories for the extremely young and inexperienced group, yet the second-winningest coach in Indian basketball history saw plenty of reasons for optimism heading into the second season of his second tenure on the bench.
"We've got a lot of guys that never would have gotten varsity experience (on a more veteran team)," Wheeler said. "Some of those guys should have been playing J-V, but in our situation, they had to play varsity. The thing is now it's going to be up to them in May, June, July and in the fall to work hard to make all this worthwhile."
"We've paid our dues, now we've got to make it work. We've got to get in the weight room, we've got to get in the gym. We went through this tough time for a reason, and that'll be decided in this offseason."
Kuhnert (12 points) and Vogel (10) joined Bullar in double figures for the night, and Nolan Showalter (9 points) and Wright (8) were each a bucket away from giving the Indians five players in double digits. Mercier finished with 3 points.
Josh Snyder led Red Bud in scoring with his 16-point effort. The Musketeers will face top-seeded Nashville in Tuesday night's first semifinal.
Cook, who suffered his original knee injury during football season, received a PRP injection to speed up the healing and missed the final two games of the season for the Indians. The senior hopes the treatment will have him ready to go for the start of baseball season in March, when DHS will be among the favorites in the River-to-River Conference after a Sectional final appearance in 2013.