For most of the first half, it looked like the Skyline High School boys basketball team would pick up another win over league rival Cunningham, but the host Wildcats roared back with a 19-3 run spanning the second and third quarters and the T-birds couldn’t recover in a 55-42 loss Friday at Cunningham.
Skyline started off in control as they handled the Wildcats’ full-court pressure in the first quarter, but the wheels started to come off late in the second.
Cunningham forced six T-bird turnovers in the second quarter and finished the half on a 6-0 run to get within two at 20-18.
The Wildcats kept cruising in the third quarter, scoring eight straight points to go up 31-23 on a putback by Garrett Beat with 4:02 left.
By the time the quarter ended, Cunningham had a 40-28 lead and Skyline had turned the ball over nine times in the quarter while attempting just seven shots.
The T-birds tried to rally, scoring the first four points of the fourth quarter on a basket by Brandon Broce and a pair of free throws by Trent Befort to get back within eight down 40-32 a minute in.
But Cunningham’s Cody Gridley scored five straight to push the lead to 45-32 with 4:38 left.
In the final minutes, the Wildcats were able to answer every run the T-birds made as they held on for a 55-42 win.
Skyline turned the ball over 26 times on the night and Cunningham converted enough of those opportunities, plus got strong performances from post players Cody Beat and Cody Gridley as they improved to 8-10 on the season.
Skyline fell to 9-8 on the year, but the T-birds have two winnable games this week and should be in line for a top-four seed in next week’s Class 1A Regional Tournament at Coldwater.
Friday night, Brian Moore led Skyline with 16 points, seven rebounds and two blocks. He was six-for-ten from the floor and four-of-four at the free throw line.
Befort added nine points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals, while sophomore Easton Burgardt scored five points to go with five rebounds.
Jeff Rondeau chipped in with six steals and four points while Jed Brenner had four points and an assist.
Broce and Brennan Stotts each handed out two assists on the night.
“We didn’t handle the pressure very well,” SHS coach Justin Miltner said. “My guards got too rattled and even Trent, who’s usually a solid team leader was rattled and it kinda rolls downhill after that.”
Skyline was so rattled that they hit just 15 of 41 field goals (36 percent) and two of 12 three-pointers.
“They did a good enough job keeping us out of our offense,” Miltner said of the Wildcats. “We just never could find any rhythm and we couldn’t hit an outside shot again.”
Skyline travels to Norwich tomorrow night before hosting Central Christian in Friday’s regular season finale.
Cunningham boys 55, Skyline 42
SHS: Brian Moore 6 4-4 16, Trent Befort 3 3-5 9, Easton Burgardt 1 (1) 0-0 5, Jed Brenner (1) 1-2 4, Jeff Rondeau 2 0-4 4, Brandon Broce 1 0-0 2, Tristen Hirt 1 0-0 2, Aaron Hirt 0 0-0 0, Brennan Stotts 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 14 (2) 8-17 42.
CHS: Cody Beat 9 2-6 20, Cody Gridley 4 4-6 12, Kyle Gridley 3 0-1 6, Andy Albers (1) 2-2 5, Kyle Kerschen 1 (1) 0-0 5, Garrett Beat 2 0-0 4, Nick Huhman (1) 0-2 3, Kyler Goetz 0 0-0 0, Hunter Hope 0 0-0 0, Jordan Schaller 0 0-0 0, Justin Stackhouse 0 0-0, Mike Vierthaler 0 0-0 0, Chase Ward 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 19 (3) 8-16 55.
S 16 4 8 14 – 42
C 10 8 22 15 – 55
