The Irish fell for the fourth consecutive game, this team losing to Buckeye Valley by the score of 49-46.
The Irish jumped to a quick 7-0 lead, but Buckeye Valley battled back and closed to within 13-10 after the first quarter.
The Irish still led 27-26 at the half after a three pointer by Buckeye Valley just before half closed the lead to just 1. Raneal Ewing had the hot hand in the first half finishing with 16 first half points.
After Buckeye Valley opened up an 8 point lead, the Irish battled back and trailed by just 4 at 36-32 after the 3rd quarter. The Irish then scored the first six points of the 4th quarter on a traditional 3 pointer by Ewing after a steal and a three pointer by Joshua Ashwill to take a 38-36 lead. After Buckeye Valley tied it at 38, the Irish regained the lead at 40-38 after a Justin Craig steal led to a basket by Craig off an assist by Ewing. After Buckeye Valley took a 42-40 lead, the Irish tied the score again on a drive and basket by Antonio Bisutti. Buckeye Valley scored 4 straight to take a 46-42 lead with 1:08 remaining. The Irish closed to 46-44 on a basket by Ewing, but Buckeye Valley made 2 free throws to regain a 4 point 48-44 lead with :50 seconds remaining. Gabe McGlone then made a basket to cut it to 48-46 with :30 seconds remaining. Buckeye Valley then missed 2 free throws and the Irish had life. The Irish missed a three, however after a Buckeye Valley rebound, the Irish forced a jump ball and regained possession under their own basket with 12 seconds remaining. The Irish's last opportunity, a three pointer, was just off and Buckeye Valley added a foul shot with 1 second remaining for the final count.
For the night, Ewing had 24 points to lead the Irish. Ashwill added 8, Bisutti 6, and Travis Yates, Jalen Johnson, McGlone and Craig 2 each.
Box Score
DS: Ewing 10-3-24, Ashwill 3-0-8, Bisutti 2-2-6, Craig 1-0-2, McGlone 1-0-2, Yates 1-0-2, Johnson 1-0-2. 3-point goals: Ashwill 2, Ewing. Totals: 19-5-46.
BV: Tomlinson 5-2-13, Crawford 5-3-13, Clark 1-7-10, Jackson 2-1-5, Novak 1-3-5, Hassinger 1-0-3. 3-point goals: Clark, Hassinger, Tomlinson. Totals: 15-16-49.
The Irish closed out the game on a 23-9 run to defeat Buckeye Valley by the score of 53-36.
The Irish pressure defense lead to numerous steals throughout the game. The Irish played an especially strong second half with good ball movement leading to a number of open shots, including 5 three pointers, 4 of them by Dominic Madison. Braxton Wallace had a number of nice passes and assists.
Chase Sult had the hot hand early , burying four 1st half three pointers, and five total for the game.
Dominic Madison buried a three pointer to end the 3rd quarter, giving the Irish a 33-27 lead and the Irish never looked back.
For the night, Sult led the scoring with 15, while Madison added 14. Other scorers included Ryan Gibson and Wallace with 8 each, Aaron Strausbaugh with 3, Jacob Shafer and Tyler Zack with 2 each, and Zac Brown with 1.
The Irish JV is now 3-3 on the year, including 2-2 in the conference.