INDIANAPOLIS — For the first time in school history, the Pendleton Heights Arabians played a game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, the home of the Pacers in Indianapolis. Just 17 hours after completing a much more important conference win in Greenfield, coach Kevin Bates and the players decided to enjoy the experience and have a fun day at the venue.
In the process, they nearly pulled off a major upset.
Junior Ditwan Gary scored his only seven points of the game during a crucial stretch early in the fourth quarter as the 10th-ranked Pike Red Devils fended off repeated comeback efforts by a game Pendleton Heights squad to hand the Arabians a 63-58 defeat Saturday in Indianapolis.
The Arabians fell to 13-4 on the season, while Pike improved to 14-4.
Pendleton Heights had focused its attention in practice this week to preparing for Friday night’s win at Greenfield-Central, a conference opponent. But the Arabians certainly looked ready for the Red Devils.
Senior Brandon Helpling scored a pair of layups to open the game, and sophomore Eli Pancol converted a 3-point play to give the Arabians an early 7-2 lead. Although Pike took the lead, sophomore Karsten Windlan hit a 3-point shot near the end of the quarter as Pendleton Heights took a 16-14 lead into the second period.
It was a lead that swelled to 24-19 following a pair of free throws by Pancol, but senior Justin Williams, who led Pike with 22 points, hit three straight 3-point shots to start a 16-2 Pike run that lasted into the third quarter to stake the Red Devils to a 35-26 lead.
But again, the Arabians fought back. Eventually trailing 43-34, Pendleton Heights scored the last eight points of the third to pull within one. Pancol drove to the basket for two, then hit a free throw, before Windlan found him with a bullet pass leading to a one-handed dunk. Windlan then hit a 3 at the buzzer, and the Pike lead was back down to one at 43-42, entering the fourth quarter.
“I’m proud of them,” Bates said of his players. “They fought and they battled. Pike is a great team — three times in a row Marion County champions. For our kids to have a chance to win, and to feel like they should have won, says a lot about their character.”
Still clinging to a 3-point lead, Pike then went on another run, this time a 10-3 stretch during which Gary hit a 3-pointer, a layup and a pair of free throws, and the Red Devil advantage was the biggest of the game at 57-47.
But Windlan and senior Mark Albers each hit a long 3-point shot, and Pancol converted another 3-point play to keep the Arabians close. Pike hit just enough free throws down the stretch to keep Pendleton Heights at bay and hold on for the win.
Albers, who led all scorers with 26 points, said he will cherish the opportunity to play at the home of the Pacers.
“It was definitely an eye-opening experience,” he said. “I’ve never got to do anything like this before in my life. At the end of the day, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and it was awesome to get to do it.”
Despite having a much longer drive to the arena, the Arabian fans far outnumbered the Pike supporters, a fact not lost on Albers.
“It was very evident,” he said. “Our community has definitely been behind us this year; it’s been a great year up to this point. I knew they would show up; everyone has been talking about it at school, so I knew it was going to be a good crowd.”
“I did make the comment to my coaches — ‘Wow, look how many people came,’” Bates said. “Our fans are great they are very supportive and get behind us. I can’t thank them or our student section enough.”
The Arabians will return home and return to conference at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 2, when they play host to Yorktown.
Vs. Greenfield-Central
The Pendleton Heights Arabians are a team that thrives on emotion. After half of Friday’s basketball game in Greenfield on Friday, they needed a spark.
Eli Pancol was in the right place at the right time and ignited an Arabian firestorm.
The sophomore scored 16 points, including a thunderous rebound dunk that paved the way for a 20-3 second-half run as the Arabians knocked off Greenfield-Central 63-53.
Pendleton Heights (13-3) remained unbeaten in Hoosier Heritage Conference play at 4-0, while the Cougars fell to 6-9 overall (2-4, HHC).
In the first half, the Cougars led by as many as seven and by two at halftime. And with the Arabians trailing by a 31-26 score, senior Eston Stull got the run started with a 3-point shot off an assist from Pancol. The 6-foot-4 Pancol then buried a 15-foot jumper after picking up a steal on defense.
Senior Mark Albers launched a 3-point attempt from the left side, but it caromed off the rim into the waiting hand of Pancol, who slammed home the go-ahead dunk.
Sophomore Karsten Windlan collected a steal and converted a 3-point play after being fouled on a layup.
In four possessions, the Arabians went from five down to five up. Pendleton Heights coach Kevin Bates said the combination of an adjustment on defense and the dunk by Pancol were the keys to the comeback.
“What I think got our motor going was when we started our little 1-2-2 pressure defense,” Bates said. “And to top it off, Eli’s dunk. We’re a team that runs on emotion. As soon as he did that, our bench exploded; the kids out there were jumping around. It finally got us going.”
A pair of baskets from Albers and five free throws, two by junior Justin Shupe and three from Pancol, capped the run and gave the Arabians their biggest lead of the game at 46-34.
A 3-point shot by John Davis pulled the Cougars to within four at 50-46, but Albers — who scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half — answered with back-to-back threes. The Arabian lead would be no less than eight the rest of the way.
The Cougars did a solid job of slowing down the top three Arabian scorers — Albers, Windlan and Pancol, in the first half. The trio combined to score just eight points before halftime, a result of a tough zone defense played by Greenfield-Central.
“Give them credit,” he said. “They played a triangle and two — they really stuck to Mark and Karsten. Early on, I thought Eli stepped into some good shots but just didn’t make them. What it did was made us stand a lot.”
The bench provided a boost in the first half to keep the Arabians close. Shupe and sophomore Damieon Warrum scored five points each. With both Pancol and Windlan in early foul trouble, Bates said the bench contributions were important. And will be again.
“It was real big,” Bates said. “You have to have a good bench. If you want to win a conference, a county or a sectional, you have to have players on the bench who are ready to play. I thought they did that. I thought Damieon was spectacular tonight. Those guys were big and instrumental to our success tonight.”
The Arabians will now turn their attention to the Pike Red Devils. Pendleton Heights will play the 10th ranked Red Devils today afternoon at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis at 2:30 p.m. Bates said it will be a fun and memorable day for his players.
“We knew tonight was going to be a battle,” he said. “I promised them if they could get through tonight, tomorrow was going to be enjoyable. It will be a time these kids will never forget. What a great experience to be able to play at Bankers Life — the kids will love it. Sure, we want to win, but we don’t have to win. It’s not a conference or a sectional. We’ll go enjoy the time and see what happens.”
In the junior varsity game, the Arabians also picked up a win against the Cougars by a 34-30 score. Sophomore Christian Jones hit five 3-pointers and scored 18 points, sophomore Christian Conkling grabbed seven rebounds, and sophomore Cole Dunham dished out four assists.