Hillsboro pushes past McClain with 36-point 4th quarter

HILLSBORO — Many fans who had been hoping for nostalgia involving the Hillsboro Indians vs. McClain Tigers boys basketball rivalry had their wish come true on Friday night. 

For three quarters on the cold January evening, it was an old-school heated basketball battle inside the jam-packed gymnasium of the host Hillsboro Indians with low-scoring, tough play and excellent defense.

The Tigers (0-4, 6-4) even had retro-style gold-and-purple uniforms that were reminiscent of the early-to-mid 2000s from past days of success. Yes, the Indians and Tigers rivalry was back in full swing — even having some extracurricular activity following the game — in the first of two Frontier Athletic Conference clashes they’ll have against each other this season. 

Even the score was tied at 31 points apiece after three quarters, but then something changed on the side of the home team Indians (1-3, 6-5) during the break in action from the end of the third to the start of the fourth frame, and the entire tempo of the game changed as the Indians gained the momentum, outscoring McClain 36-19 in the final eight minutes for a 67-50 victory on their home court against the Tigers. 

“It took us a while to watch some shots go through, but once we saw them go through, it was a lot easier,” Hillsboro head coach Jarrod Haines said. “Tate [Davis] had a great night today. He showed his will, which that's what we're used to seeing, so it’s good to be back on that side of things. 

“I will say the Greenfield boys play with a lot of heart. I think it's a lot different team to look at than last year, and actually, I think they get better every week. I've watched every one of their games.” 

As the fourth began with the two teams deadlocked at 31 points each, the Indians took an eight-point lead in a span of just over two minutes with Jack Howland sinking a 3-pointer to start the barrage of scoring for Hillsboro, with the sophomore finishing with 20 points. 

Next came a basket by junior Tre Captain —totaling 12 points in the win — who battled in the paint against the defense of McClain, and following a timeout by the Tigers, HHS senior Tate Davis had a three-point play with 6:58 on the clock for a 39-31 lead. Davis led the Indians with 27 points, scoring 11 points in the fourth quarter.

The Tigers answered with a basket by senior Zane Adams with 6:42 on the clock for the Tigers’ first points of the quarter, as Adams ended the game with 15 points. Next were consecutive baskets made by Howland, as the sophomore sank a 3-pointer, then a few seconds later stole the ball and went to the hoop for two more points and a 44-33 Indians lead with 6:18 left in the final frame. 

McClain called another timeout but scored a 3-pointer from Adams with 6:05 left in regulation, only to have the Indians answer with a put-back basket from senior Dylan Dixon, and a steal and fast-break layup by Davis pushed the Indians’ lead to 12 points with 5:30 on the clock. 

MHS junior Julien Evans picked up the loose basketball and scored two points as he took the ball to the hoop, but again Hillsboro’s Davis answered with a jumper to push the Indians’ lead to 12 points. Senior Owen Sykes added one point to McClain’s final total with a free throw, but Davis came back with another two-point basket with the assist from Dixon for a 13-point lead at 52-39 near the halfway point of the fourth. 

As the clock read 3:38, Captain scored two points off a jumper off a pass from Dixon, then the Indians added another basket to their side with Captain again sinking a shot with the assist from Dixon, moving the Indians’ lead to 17 points. 

McClain didn’t back down as Sykes made two free throws, but those points were surpassed with baskets from Captain and Howland for a 19-point advantage by HHS. 

“They got on a roll, and we just didn't have an answer for it,” McClain head coach Jarrod Haines said. “Then they start bringing some pressure. We struggled a little bit, but man, we fought so hard. Seeing where we were a year ago, and coming to this environment, people are worried about you. That's a big deal for us. That's a culture we're trying to build, and we're going to build off of this. 

“I thought it was a game against a good team, and we battled. Those are two of the best ball players out there, in Howland and Davis, that you’re going to see, especially at the guard position. I’m super proud of my kids. I mean, we shared the ball. We played together defensively. We executed our game plan for three and a half quarters, it’s just that little run they went to, but credit them, and they’ve got good basketball players. Josh does a good job, and they took advantage of what we gave them.”

The Tigers continued to battle with points in the paint from Adams and Sykes, followed by a 3-pointer by junior Jordan Bell, chipping into the lead of Hillsboro with 1:19 left in regulation. Sykes totaled eight points for the game, and Bell collected nine points off three 3-pointers. 

Davis made two free throws for the Indians, and the final points of MHS were scored by Sykes off a rebound and basket. HHS ended the game with two free throws made by Howland, a free throw from Captain and a dunk as time expired by Dixon, lifting Hillsboro to a 17-point win over their Highland County rival. 

As for the first three quarters, neither quarter ended with either team having a lead of more than two points, with McClain leading 8-7 after the first quarter, and they also led at halftime by a 20-18 score as McClain scored 12 points in the second and Hillsboro scored 13 points in the same frame. In the third, MHS added 11 points to the visitors’ side of the scoreboard, while the Indians scored another 13 points to their total, leaving the score tied at 31 points each. 

“We talked about halftime, our offense was still kind of stagnant,” Howland said. “We weren’t getting the reversals we needed to get. I went to our bench, and I thought we got some good bench moments out of Brady Juillerat and out of Mason Dumpert. We had players coming off the bench and didn’t drop off a whole lot. 

“[At Western Brown] we saw the ball getting rotated getting reversed a lot more, and that is what we want. We want more guys involved. We have other guys that put in the work and contribute just as well. That’s the direction we need to go over time.”

Going back to the first quarter, McClain had three points from freshman Hudson Lovett (who scored nine points overall), two points from Evans, two made free throws by Adams and one free throw from Sykes. On the opposite side, Davis scored four points off two buckets for the Indians, and Howland had three points in the opening frame. 

Hillsboro’s 11-point second quarter saw Davis score six points off three baskets, while Howland made a 3-pointer and junior Brady Juillerat scored two points off free throws. The Tigers’ second frame of 12 points had two 3-pointers by Bell (6:42 and 4:59), while senior sank a 3-pointer Riley Cummins connected with a 3-pointer at the 6:14 mark of the second. The Tigers also had a 3-pointer from Lovett in the same frame with 2:25 on the clock. 

McClain’s third quarter had two 3-pointers from Adams, two points by Evans and a 3-pointer made by Lovett. Hillsboro’s 13-point third quarter consisted of six points by Davis off two baskets and two free throws, plus two made free throws on two attempts by senior Brayden Hunter. Hillsboro’s third also had three points by Captain and two points by Howland. 

“Zane’s a big time player, and he made some big shots for us,” Haines said. “I thought Jordan Bell played well too at times. Owen Sykes rebounded the ball super well for us, and freshman Hudson Lovett had a good game. Julien Evans came in, played some good defense, as did Brandon Greene. We got some good play out of some guys tonight. It’s just [Hillsboro] made a run, and we didn't have an answer. 

“These seniors are doing a good job of building a culture and playing hard, and hopefully that'll just keep going all the way down.”

Other final scoring totals for HHS included Dixon (four), Hunter (two) and Juillerat (two). More final scoring totals for McClain included Sykes (eight), Evans (six) and Cummins (three). 

The win improves the Indians to an overall record of 6-5, with a FAC record of 1-3. McClain now stands at 6-4 overall and 0-4 in the FAC.

HHS will play next Saturday, Jan. 18 against Fairland in a non-conference game at Shawnee State University at the Buckeye Elite Showcase at 2 p.m. 

MHS plays next Saturday, Jan. 18 on the road in a non-conference game in Chillicothe against the Unioto Shermans at UHS at 7:30 p.m. 

BOX SCORE
MHS    08 12 11 19 — 50 
HHS    07 11 13 36 — 67 

HILLSBORO (67) — T.Davis 11 (0) 5-5 27, B.Hunter 0 (0) 2-2 2, D.Dixon 2 (0) 0-0 4, T.Captain 5 (0) 2-4 12, J.Howland 4 (3) 3-4 20, B.Juillerat 0 (0) 2-2 2. TOTALS: 22 (3) 14-17 67. 

MCCLAIN (50) — Z.Adams 2 (3) 2-3 15, R.Cummins 0 (1) 0-0 3, J.Bell 0 (3) 0-0 9, J.Evans 3 (0) 0-0 6, O.Sykes 2 (0) 4-8 8, H.Lovett 1 (2) 1-4 9. TOTALS: 8 (9) 7-15 50. 

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