BOYS BASKETBALL: Indians beat Sparta, win #199 for Wheeler at DHS
Foul trouble, poor free throw shooting, and having one bad offensive quarter have all hurt the Indians at one point or another this season, often times in the same ball game. On Friday night against Sparta, Du Quoin again had to deal with all three of those obstacles, yet still found a way to grab a 50-44 conference victory in Anders Gymnasium at DHS.
Leading scorer Jarred Thomas' minutes were limited by picking up his fourth foul late in the third quarter. DHS made just 13-of-23 free throws. The Indians' offense struggled to put up just four points in the second quarter.
But an 18-11 first quarter put Du Quoin out in front for the rest of the game, as every time Sparta made a run, the Indians had an answer. Thomas (13 points) and A.J. Smith (11 points, 3 three-pointers) both finished in double figures for DHS.
"We played solid defense and hit a couple threes," said Du Quoin head coach Wendell Wheeler. "A.J. did a really good job for us. I thought in stretches we looked really good, but we were inconsistent. I think when you're a young team that's still growing, that's the biggest thing you've got to conquer is being inconsistent. At times we looked really good, other times we struggled with a couple turnovers or a couple bad decisions."
Sparta led 3-1 after a triple from Seth Ferguson less than a minute after the tip-off, but it would be the only lead the Bulldogs held all night long.
Thomas and Brock Bullar answered Ferguson's three with back-to-back threes at Du Quoin's end, and with 4:10 to go in the opening period of play, Smith sank another trifecta to complete a 13-3 run for the Indians, who led 18-11 after eight minutes.
The lead got as big as 22-11 in the second quarter, but the DHS offense went cold for the last four minutes of the half, allowing the Bulldogs to creep back in it down 22-18 at the break.
Sparta stayed close in the second half, but couldn't get over the hump. DHS was still up four when Caleb Vogel completed a conventional three-point play with 6:03 left in the third quarter. The Bulldogs got it back down to five when Smith hit his third three ball with a minute and a half left in the third.
Sparta kept fighting, though, and actually had the lead down to two when Drew Kordys connected from beyond the arc with a little over a minute to go, but Du Quoin hit just enough free throws to stay ahead. Thomas had a highlight-reel fast-break layup as part of his five points in a 45-second stretch of the fourth quarter, and Nolan Showalter also had a strong final period with five of his nine points, including a breakaway layup with an assist from Thomas.
"(Thoams) did a good job, got the ball in the right places," Wheeler said. "He's getting a little more healthy, and that's what we're looking for. With him and A.J., and really you can go down the line, every kid contributed in some way, we've just got to keep working hard and get a little more consistent."
It was victory number 199 for Wheeler with the Indians, meaning the next win will tie him with Ray Saunches atop the leaderboard for career victories as boys varsity basketball head coach at Du Quoin High School.
Rounding out the point totals for Du Quoin were Vogel with nine points, and Bullar and Tucker Kuhnert with four apiece.
The Indians (6-7, 1-2) host Anna-Jonesboro (7-7, 0-3) this Friday for another SIRR Mississippi Division contest, then Massac County (8-4) visits Anders Gymnasium on Saturday night.