LAPEL — Lapel and Pendleton Heights hit the court Friday, Nov. 30, in a rivalry game during which there were back-and-fourth battles in a 57-53 Arabians win.
Pendleton Heights traveled to a packed gym at Lapel High School, where fans saw a defensive showdown in the first half.
Neither team could get going offensively, with Lapel leading 17-16 at the midway point.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]Click here to purchase photos from this gallery
In the second half, the Arabians found their footing and their shots as they came out of the locker room on fire, scoring 29 points in the third quarter, building a 45-35 lead after three quarters.
The Bulldogs fought back in the fourth, outscoring the Arabians 18-12, but came up short by four points.
Three Arabians scored in double figures, with Damieon Warrum leading the way with 19 points. He also pulled down six rebounds, three assists and two steals. Christian Jones scored 15 points, with 13 of them coming in the third quarter. Jones also had one rebound, three assists and one steal. Davrick Black scored 12 points with one rebound, five assists, one blocked shot and four steals. Tristan Ross scored 7 points and pulled down five rebounds. Christian Conkling added 4 points and two rebounds.
The Arabian defense was sticky and caused twice as many turnovers (14) as it made, and Pendleton Heights was able to score 12 points off those turnovers. The Arabians shot 50 percent from the field, with the Bulldogs shooting at a 48 percent clip.
The Arabians outscored the Bulldogs from the 3-point line by 6 points.
Luke Richardson led Lapel in the loss with 23 points and eight rebounds. Cole Alexander also had a good night for the Bulldogs, with 17 points and six rebounds.
Pendleton Heights, however, could not keep up the intensity on Saturday, Dec. 1, when it played host to No. 2 Carmel and fell 53-31. The Arabians fell behind 17-7 after one quarter and couldn’t get back into the game despite a strong second quarter, during which they outscored Carmel 14-11. They trailed by only seven (28-21) at the half.
Then came a second half in which the Pendleton Heights offense could not get a rhythm going. It mustered just 4 points in the third quarter and 6 points in the fourth quarter en route to the loss.
Earlier in the week, the Arabians picked up a big 57-47 win against Westfield High School.
After getting off to a slow start against the Shamrocks, the Arabians clawed their way back to lead by one at halftime, by four after the third quarter and by 10 at the end.
Christian Jones led the Arabians in scoring with 19 points. He also blocked a shot and got a steal.
The game produced a balanced scoring effort for the Arabians. Warrum scored 17 points and had six rebounds, one blocked shot and two steals. Tristan Ross, the spark-plug for the team, pumped in 11 points, eight rebounds and two assists. Christian Conklin added 6 points with seven rebounds and one steal. Darrick Black scored two points with one offensive rebound, four assists, a blocked shot and four steals. Zion Cook rounded out the scoring with 2 points.
The Arabians out- rebounded the Shamrocks 31-21 en route to the win.
Pendleton Heights (2-2) opens up Hoosier Heritage Conference play at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 7, in a road game against Mt. Vernon.
It also is scheduled to play Connersville at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8.
Lapel (2-1) takes on Wapahani at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 7, at Bankers Life Fieldhouse and will be back at home to take on Muncie Burris at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8.
