VEEDERSBURG – Fountain Central earned a spot in the the 1A Sectional 54 championship game with a 58-44 win over North Vermillion in the first semifinal matchup of Saturday morning.
With Friday’s games postponed because of a power outage at the school, the game was played bright and early Saturday morning.
The Mustangs got right to work, jumping out to a 10-0 lead that they never relinquished, as they move to 21-4 with the win.
The Falcons made it a game throughout, however, getting back to within a single possession in both the second and third quarters.
It was points off forced turnovers and a key basket whenever they needed it that kept the Mustangs in front, as they advance to the sectional championship game, looking for their first title since 2015.
"We knew North Vermillion would be ready to play,” FC coach Greg Dean said, referring back to 23-point win over the Falcons just two weeks ago. “They are a very capable team that won some big games. The game got pretty physical, which happens in sectional games, and they benefitted from that a little more than us.”
The 10-0 start was triggered by a pair of Luke Foxworthy triples, as the senior was one of three Mustangs in double figures, finishing with 13 points.
Isaac Gayler had four field goals in the first and four more in the fourth his way to a game-best 16 points. The junior also had a co-team high six rebounds, and added three assists and two steals for good measure.
Will Harmon was the third leg on the ledger, as the junior had 13 points. The impressive part of that line is that he was 11-of-12 from the line, had six boards, three assists and five steals. Harmon and Gayler were the front or back end of more than a handful of steals and runout buckets.
“We got stagnant offensively in the second quarter,” Dean said of the stretch that saw NV score 12 in a row to make it a three-point game.
After trading baskets to start the third quarter, the Mustangs went on a 13-2 run that put the game in a double-digit range.
Harmon lived at the line in the fourth quarter to seal the win.
The Falcons, who finish the season 6-17, were led in scoring by Cody Tryon with 13 points and 10 from Matthew Dawson.
For the game, NV was 16-of-42 from the field, 6-of-16 from deep and 6-of-12 from the line. They did win the rebound battle 30-29 as Dawson finished his double-double with 11 rebounds. The Falcons had 16 turnovers that FC turned into 17 points.
The Mustangs were 20-of-46 from the field, 5-of-16 from long range and 13-of-14 from the line. They had 13 turnovers that became 10 NV points.
“We changed how we pressured them,” Dean said of any strategy changes from the earlier WRC meeting. “Foul trouble dictated our substitution patterns more than anything else.”
The game was the first tournament game that the two conference foes had played since 1988, and the Mustangs now own a 7-3 record in sectional action over the Falcons.
Fountain Central will play the Rossville Hornets in the championship game as the Hornets defeated Faith Christian in the second semi-final of the afternoon.
Tip off between Rossville and Fountain Central is scheduled for 8 pm on Dave Sanders Court.
