Indians take Unioto to brink; end season in sectional semifinals
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
CHILLICOTHE — The Hillsboro Indians took their higher-seeded opponent to the brink of defeat but came up just short on Tuesday, as the Indians lost in the Division II SE District Sectional Semifinals to the Unioto Shermans, 45-38.
Just as they did last year in the postseason, the Indians played close with their Ross County opponent, this time with the No. 4 seeded Shermans being the team standing in the way of the Indians. The No. 13 seeded Indians battled tough against the Shermans, even scoring the first six points of the game, but eventually the Indians trailed by a 10-6 score at the end of the first frame.
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Hillsboro (9-14) opened the first frame with a layup by Hunter Price, followed by a put-back bucket from Caleb Crawford, and with 4:45 on the scoreboard it was Crawford again with two points in the paint for a 6-0 advantage.
Crawford finished the game with 12 points to lead Hillsboro. Price followed with 11 points.
“Our effort was awesome all night long,” HHS head coach Miles Burton said. “We definitely weren’t short when it came to effort. I’m just proud of this team. They’ve bought in from the beginning, and it would have been very easy for this season to not have gone as well as it has, culturally and basketball-wise.
“Obviously we didn’t have the record we wanted at the beginning of the season, and it has nothing to do with lack of effort. I have a young lineup that are chomping at the bit to get ready for next year.”
Then came the Shermans, and they were full speed ahead until the end of the first frame occurred with a 3-pointer by Josh Lambert, then two more points by Lambert. Unioto took the lead with a basket by Isaac Little and ended the first-quarter scoring with a basket by Carson DeBord for the 10-6 deficit for the Indians.
The scoring continued to be close in the second frame with Hillsboro reaching the scoreboard first with a basket by Jakwon Clark, and after two points by the Shermans — the home team on the scoreboard — it was baskets by Price and Clark that left the score tied at 12-12 with 6:15 left in the quarter.
Clark totaled 10 points for the Indians.
Unioto (20-3) answered with points from Reece Wheeler and Little, but the Indians did score a point off a free throw by Crawford and then a basket by Clark for a 16-15 lead still in favor of UHS.
The Shermans extended their lead as the half came to a close with five straight points for the 21-15 halftime score as they outscored HHS, 11-9.
Hillsboro ended the third frame trailing by eight points as they were outscored 14-12, with the Indians tying the score once after a 6-0 run to start the quarter with a jumper by Ryan Scott, Coltin Hunter and two points by Clark for a 21-21 score. Scott totaled five points in the game.
The Shermans quickly extended their lead to five points, and the Indians answered with two points by Scott. Later in the quarter, with 4:31 on the clock, it was Crawford with a put-back basket for a 29-26 deficit for the Indians.
Eventually, UHS added six more points to their total for the 35-27 score after three frames were finished.
Hillsboro scored the first points of the final frame with a jumper from Crawford with 5:40 left in regulation. As the game continued to be a physical game with both teams allowed to play competitive basketball, the Indians did take a trip to the free-throw line where Crawford sank two free throws with 4:39 left in the quarter for a 35-31 deficit.
HHS made it a two-point game with a steal and fast-break points by Price with 4:15 on the scoreboard. The Shermans came back with a basket by Lambert following a timeout, but once again the Indians weren’t backing down.
Next, Price sank a 3-pointer for Hillsboro with 3:10 on the clock, and then came the Indians regaining the lead with a timely layup by Clark with 2:05 remaining in regulation as Clark dove to the basket for a one-point advantage at 38-37.
Unioto answered with a jumper from Lambert, and later Little made four free throws as time clicked closer to the end of the game as UHS eventually won by seven points.
Burton also spoke about what his first season as the Indians’ head coach has been like.
“Give credit to Hillsboro, the kids have been awesome, the parents have been awesome and the community support has been even better than I would have ever imagined,” Burton said. “We packed the house for the Blanchester game, and I looked up at the stands tonight — and this isn’t a short distance — and our whole side was packed.
“Hillsboro is so unbelievable, and I’m so proud to be here and proud to call it home now, and I’m looking forward to seeing how the future unfolds here.”
Seniors for the Indians were Crawford and Silas Simmons.
“When we do improve, we have two excellent seniors that have paved the way for any success we have moving forward in Caleb Crawford and Silas Simmons,” Burton said. “They did an excellent job on and off the court, and I wouldn’t have been able to do this this year without them.
“The impact of those two seniors did not end here tonight, and they are the foundation of what we are trying to accomplish here next year and moving forward. I can’t say enough good things about them, and they will truly be missed.”
Coach Burton talked about the improvement his team had from the start of the season to the finale as the improvement showed.
“We lost by 59 points to Eastern Brown on Dec. 3, and now we are holding a No. 4 seeded team to 45 points after fouling at the end. Just defensively alone, we made a lot of strides,” Burton said. “We still aren’t where we want to be, but it is not for a lack of effort. These kids have bought in and I’m excited to have a full offseason with them, and I think they are, too.”
Just as they did last year in the postseason, the Indians played close with their Ross County opponent, this time with the No. 4 seeded Shermans being the team standing in the way of the Indians. The No. 13 seeded Indians battled tough against the Shermans, even scoring the first six points of the game, but eventually the Indians trailed by a 10-6 score at the end of the first frame.
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Hillsboro (9-14) opened the first frame with a layup by Hunter Price, followed by a put-back bucket from Caleb Crawford, and with 4:45 on the scoreboard it was Crawford again with two points in the paint for a 6-0 advantage.
Crawford finished the game with 12 points to lead Hillsboro. Price followed with 11 points.
“Our effort was awesome all night long,” HHS head coach Miles Burton said. “We definitely weren’t short when it came to effort. I’m just proud of this team. They’ve bought in from the beginning, and it would have been very easy for this season to not have gone as well as it has, culturally and basketball-wise.
“Obviously we didn’t have the record we wanted at the beginning of the season, and it has nothing to do with lack of effort. I have a young lineup that are chomping at the bit to get ready for next year.”
Then came the Shermans, and they were full speed ahead until the end of the first frame occurred with a 3-pointer by Josh Lambert, then two more points by Lambert. Unioto took the lead with a basket by Isaac Little and ended the first-quarter scoring with a basket by Carson DeBord for the 10-6 deficit for the Indians.
The scoring continued to be close in the second frame with Hillsboro reaching the scoreboard first with a basket by Jakwon Clark, and after two points by the Shermans — the home team on the scoreboard — it was baskets by Price and Clark that left the score tied at 12-12 with 6:15 left in the quarter.
Clark totaled 10 points for the Indians.
Unioto (20-3) answered with points from Reece Wheeler and Little, but the Indians did score a point off a free throw by Crawford and then a basket by Clark for a 16-15 lead still in favor of UHS.
The Shermans extended their lead as the half came to a close with five straight points for the 21-15 halftime score as they outscored HHS, 11-9.
Hillsboro ended the third frame trailing by eight points as they were outscored 14-12, with the Indians tying the score once after a 6-0 run to start the quarter with a jumper by Ryan Scott, Coltin Hunter and two points by Clark for a 21-21 score. Scott totaled five points in the game.
The Shermans quickly extended their lead to five points, and the Indians answered with two points by Scott. Later in the quarter, with 4:31 on the clock, it was Crawford with a put-back basket for a 29-26 deficit for the Indians.
Eventually, UHS added six more points to their total for the 35-27 score after three frames were finished.
Hillsboro scored the first points of the final frame with a jumper from Crawford with 5:40 left in regulation. As the game continued to be a physical game with both teams allowed to play competitive basketball, the Indians did take a trip to the free-throw line where Crawford sank two free throws with 4:39 left in the quarter for a 35-31 deficit.
HHS made it a two-point game with a steal and fast-break points by Price with 4:15 on the scoreboard. The Shermans came back with a basket by Lambert following a timeout, but once again the Indians weren’t backing down.
Next, Price sank a 3-pointer for Hillsboro with 3:10 on the clock, and then came the Indians regaining the lead with a timely layup by Clark with 2:05 remaining in regulation as Clark dove to the basket for a one-point advantage at 38-37.
Unioto answered with a jumper from Lambert, and later Little made four free throws as time clicked closer to the end of the game as UHS eventually won by seven points.
Burton also spoke about what his first season as the Indians’ head coach has been like.
“Give credit to Hillsboro, the kids have been awesome, the parents have been awesome and the community support has been even better than I would have ever imagined,” Burton said. “We packed the house for the Blanchester game, and I looked up at the stands tonight — and this isn’t a short distance — and our whole side was packed.
“Hillsboro is so unbelievable, and I’m so proud to be here and proud to call it home now, and I’m looking forward to seeing how the future unfolds here.”
Seniors for the Indians were Crawford and Silas Simmons.
“When we do improve, we have two excellent seniors that have paved the way for any success we have moving forward in Caleb Crawford and Silas Simmons,” Burton said. “They did an excellent job on and off the court, and I wouldn’t have been able to do this this year without them.
“The impact of those two seniors did not end here tonight, and they are the foundation of what we are trying to accomplish here next year and moving forward. I can’t say enough good things about them, and they will truly be missed.”
Coach Burton talked about the improvement his team had from the start of the season to the finale as the improvement showed.
“We lost by 59 points to Eastern Brown on Dec. 3, and now we are holding a No. 4 seeded team to 45 points after fouling at the end. Just defensively alone, we made a lot of strides,” Burton said. “We still aren’t where we want to be, but it is not for a lack of effort. These kids have bought in and I’m excited to have a full offseason with them, and I think they are, too.”