Ethan Watson nets 1,000th career point in Hillsboro win at Paint Valley
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
BAINBRIDGE — It was a battle for both the Hillsboro Indians and the Paint Valley Bearcats Tuesday night, and in the process of the Tribe gaining a 62-56 road victory, they also saw senior Ethan Watson gain his 1,000th career point in the latter stages of the fourth quarter.
Watson scored his career milestone point with 3:37 left on the fourth-quarter clock off a mid-range jumper to push the Indians ahead, 51-46 at the time of the made basket. Watson finished the game with 25 points, as Watson now has 1,002 career points.
“Actually, I didn’t (know),” Watson said of scoring his 1,000th point. “The Paint Valley coach told me after the game and congratulated me. I was shocked. I honestly didn’t know I was that close. I never pictured myself as a senior scoring 1,000 points. I really didn’t. That was the goal I had this year, to score 1,000 points, and it meant a lot to me.
“I’d like to thank every coach who has ever coached me. They’ve all taught me, and every little part of the game has helped me to accomplish this. I’d also like to thank my mom, my dad, my family, my teammates and my girlfriend.”
HHS head coach Bruce Miles spoke about Watson.
“Congratulations to Ethan Watson on his accomplishment. That is quite a feat for a player to score 1,000 points in the career. I couldn’t be happier for a kid. I’ve had the privilege to coach him his whole career,” Miles said. “We knew back in junior high he had the potential to have a nice career, a great career for us at Hillsboro basketball, and he certainly has done that.
“The kid works hard. He’s a natural scorer. I’m just really proud of him and all the time he’s put into this program, to see it pay off tonight with 1,000 points. His sophomore year he did play a lot for us, and he’s gotten better every year. We’re really proud of his growth as a player.”
The game between the non-conference foes at PVHS saw the Bearcats lead 19-15 at the end of the first quarter where the score was tied twice early on. Of the first-quarter scoring for the Indians, four players contributed with Ryan Scott having six points, Watson scoring five and both Reece Bloomfield and Mason Swayne each adding two points. Scott finished the game with 18 points.
The Indians opened the second frame on a a 7-0 run, beginning with a Watson layup, followed by a free throw from Brad Miller and a jumper for two points by Ryan Scott. Next came a layup by Miller for a 22-19 Indians advantage with 5:58 left in the quarter. Miller finished with seven points.
Paint Valley came back with five straight points to take back the lead at 24-22, only to see Watson add two points in the paint off an assist from Swayne, tying the score at 24 with 2:33 on the clock.
The Bearcats regained the lead with a free throw, but the Indians answered with a two-point basket by Bloomfield and a drive to the hoop for two points from Scott for a 28-25 Indians lead. PV scored the final two points of the first half, leaving the Indians in front at 28-27 when halftime arrived.
“It’s good going into the tournament to have a tight ballgame and come out with the win. We did not rebound well tonight at all. I thought that was the difference in the game,” Miles said. “We gave them second and third opportunities, so we’ve got to do a better job rebounding, but I am pleased to get the win.
“Our kids did a great job in the second half of spreading Paint Valley out, getting to the basket, finishing, getting to the free-throw line. We’ve got to be able to get to the basket and use some of our athleticism and make good decisions in there. I thought we did that in the second half.”
Though the second half began with the Bearcats scoring the first point of the third off a free throw, the Indians answered with the next eight points with six straight from Watson and two points off a fast break layup from Swayne (with the assist by Watson) for a 36-28 lead with 4:00 left in the quarter, as Swayne finished the game with four points.
As the quarter continued, HHS had a jumper from Watson, a layup by Bloomfield — who totaled eight points — and a 3-pointer from Scott to eventually hold a lead of 43-39 at the end of the third frame, with the Indians winning the quarter at 15-12.
“I’ve got to talk about Reece Bloomfield. I thought he played the best game of his season. He got every 50/50 ball. He took a huge charge in a critical moment for us when they were making a run,” Miles said. “Unfortunately, with his height, he can’t go up there and grab those tall rebounds, but every ball that came to him he was able to get and battle and fight those guys because he’s so doggone strong. He’s able to use his strength to his advantage. I’m really proud of Reece and his effort. He was kind of the unsung hero for us. He just did every little thing that we needed to be done to win that game.”
PV opened the fourth frame with four straight points by Bryce Newland, but maybe the biggest defensive play of the game for Hillsboro came with 5:42 left in the fourth as Bloomfield took a timely charge as the score was tied at 43.
Newland led Paint Valley with 21 points, and next was Hunter Hamilton with 14 points.
HHS came back with a free throw by Watson, only to see the Bearcats answer the feat. Watson came back strong with a 3-pointer, and both teams exchanged baskets to see the Indians in the lead at 49-48 around the 4:00 mark of the final frame.
Next came the aforementioned mid-range jumper from Watson that gave him his 1,000th career point, only to have the Bearcats score the next four points to take a 52-51 lead over the Indians with 2:58 on the clock.
Following a timeout, the Indians had a jumper from Scott and two points in the paint by Miller for the Indians to regain the lead at the 2:09 mark by a 55-52 score. From there, the two teams exchanged free-throw conversions, until HHS eventually held a lead of seven points at 60-53.
PV came back with a 3-pointer by Caiden Grubb to make it a four-point differential, but the Indians finished the game with two final free throws by Scott.
“I thought Ryan made some big shots, some free throws. Brad Miller seemed like he had a hand on every rebound. He was mixing it up. Gavin (Temple) came off the bench and gave great effort with his defense as usual,” Miles said. “Mason is battling through a little bit of a lower back injury, and I’m proud of him for stepping up and playing after getting hurt against Greenfield.
“It was a total team win, and now we’ve got to get prepared for Miami Trace in the tournament. Our second season begins next Tuesday.”
For the game, the Bearcats totaled 21 two-point baskets, two 3-pointers and were 8-of-15 from the free-throw line. The Indians were 15-of-24 from the free-throw line, while also making 19 two-point baskets and three three-pointers.
Next for the Indians is their Division II SE District sectional semifinal game on Tuesday, Feb. 19, as the No. 8 seeded Indians will face the No. 9 seeded Miami Trace Panthers at 6:15 p.m. at Southeastern High School.
Watson scored his career milestone point with 3:37 left on the fourth-quarter clock off a mid-range jumper to push the Indians ahead, 51-46 at the time of the made basket. Watson finished the game with 25 points, as Watson now has 1,002 career points.
“Actually, I didn’t (know),” Watson said of scoring his 1,000th point. “The Paint Valley coach told me after the game and congratulated me. I was shocked. I honestly didn’t know I was that close. I never pictured myself as a senior scoring 1,000 points. I really didn’t. That was the goal I had this year, to score 1,000 points, and it meant a lot to me.
“I’d like to thank every coach who has ever coached me. They’ve all taught me, and every little part of the game has helped me to accomplish this. I’d also like to thank my mom, my dad, my family, my teammates and my girlfriend.”
HHS head coach Bruce Miles spoke about Watson.
“Congratulations to Ethan Watson on his accomplishment. That is quite a feat for a player to score 1,000 points in the career. I couldn’t be happier for a kid. I’ve had the privilege to coach him his whole career,” Miles said. “We knew back in junior high he had the potential to have a nice career, a great career for us at Hillsboro basketball, and he certainly has done that.
“The kid works hard. He’s a natural scorer. I’m just really proud of him and all the time he’s put into this program, to see it pay off tonight with 1,000 points. His sophomore year he did play a lot for us, and he’s gotten better every year. We’re really proud of his growth as a player.”
The game between the non-conference foes at PVHS saw the Bearcats lead 19-15 at the end of the first quarter where the score was tied twice early on. Of the first-quarter scoring for the Indians, four players contributed with Ryan Scott having six points, Watson scoring five and both Reece Bloomfield and Mason Swayne each adding two points. Scott finished the game with 18 points.
The Indians opened the second frame on a a 7-0 run, beginning with a Watson layup, followed by a free throw from Brad Miller and a jumper for two points by Ryan Scott. Next came a layup by Miller for a 22-19 Indians advantage with 5:58 left in the quarter. Miller finished with seven points.
Paint Valley came back with five straight points to take back the lead at 24-22, only to see Watson add two points in the paint off an assist from Swayne, tying the score at 24 with 2:33 on the clock.
The Bearcats regained the lead with a free throw, but the Indians answered with a two-point basket by Bloomfield and a drive to the hoop for two points from Scott for a 28-25 Indians lead. PV scored the final two points of the first half, leaving the Indians in front at 28-27 when halftime arrived.
“It’s good going into the tournament to have a tight ballgame and come out with the win. We did not rebound well tonight at all. I thought that was the difference in the game,” Miles said. “We gave them second and third opportunities, so we’ve got to do a better job rebounding, but I am pleased to get the win.
“Our kids did a great job in the second half of spreading Paint Valley out, getting to the basket, finishing, getting to the free-throw line. We’ve got to be able to get to the basket and use some of our athleticism and make good decisions in there. I thought we did that in the second half.”
Though the second half began with the Bearcats scoring the first point of the third off a free throw, the Indians answered with the next eight points with six straight from Watson and two points off a fast break layup from Swayne (with the assist by Watson) for a 36-28 lead with 4:00 left in the quarter, as Swayne finished the game with four points.
As the quarter continued, HHS had a jumper from Watson, a layup by Bloomfield — who totaled eight points — and a 3-pointer from Scott to eventually hold a lead of 43-39 at the end of the third frame, with the Indians winning the quarter at 15-12.
“I’ve got to talk about Reece Bloomfield. I thought he played the best game of his season. He got every 50/50 ball. He took a huge charge in a critical moment for us when they were making a run,” Miles said. “Unfortunately, with his height, he can’t go up there and grab those tall rebounds, but every ball that came to him he was able to get and battle and fight those guys because he’s so doggone strong. He’s able to use his strength to his advantage. I’m really proud of Reece and his effort. He was kind of the unsung hero for us. He just did every little thing that we needed to be done to win that game.”
PV opened the fourth frame with four straight points by Bryce Newland, but maybe the biggest defensive play of the game for Hillsboro came with 5:42 left in the fourth as Bloomfield took a timely charge as the score was tied at 43.
Newland led Paint Valley with 21 points, and next was Hunter Hamilton with 14 points.
HHS came back with a free throw by Watson, only to see the Bearcats answer the feat. Watson came back strong with a 3-pointer, and both teams exchanged baskets to see the Indians in the lead at 49-48 around the 4:00 mark of the final frame.
Next came the aforementioned mid-range jumper from Watson that gave him his 1,000th career point, only to have the Bearcats score the next four points to take a 52-51 lead over the Indians with 2:58 on the clock.
Following a timeout, the Indians had a jumper from Scott and two points in the paint by Miller for the Indians to regain the lead at the 2:09 mark by a 55-52 score. From there, the two teams exchanged free-throw conversions, until HHS eventually held a lead of seven points at 60-53.
PV came back with a 3-pointer by Caiden Grubb to make it a four-point differential, but the Indians finished the game with two final free throws by Scott.
“I thought Ryan made some big shots, some free throws. Brad Miller seemed like he had a hand on every rebound. He was mixing it up. Gavin (Temple) came off the bench and gave great effort with his defense as usual,” Miles said. “Mason is battling through a little bit of a lower back injury, and I’m proud of him for stepping up and playing after getting hurt against Greenfield.
“It was a total team win, and now we’ve got to get prepared for Miami Trace in the tournament. Our second season begins next Tuesday.”
For the game, the Bearcats totaled 21 two-point baskets, two 3-pointers and were 8-of-15 from the free-throw line. The Indians were 15-of-24 from the free-throw line, while also making 19 two-point baskets and three three-pointers.
Next for the Indians is their Division II SE District sectional semifinal game on Tuesday, Feb. 19, as the No. 8 seeded Indians will face the No. 9 seeded Miami Trace Panthers at 6:15 p.m. at Southeastern High School.