Sloppy game. North had a fifteen point lead (63-48) heading into the fourth period, and nearly squandered all of it.

 

North Oldham did a great job of getting the ball down low early and getting good looks for Tyler Higdon and his brother, Ian Higdon. Moore didn't seem to have a reliable answer for either. Senior Tyler finished with a double double (12 points / 11 rebounds) on 6 of 7 shooting unofficially and freshman Ian finished with 18 points and 7 rebounds on 7 of 9 shooting.

 

But North wasted a lot of possessions in the second half on quick threes instead of taking advantage of their inside dominance, often shooting out of transition and before any rebounders were in position, resulting one and done possessions. North simply couldn't buy a three on the day, hitting just 4 of 23 for 17.4%. And in the fourth period, Moore's frantic defense was able to force four turnovers.

 

With 39 seconds left Ian Higdon hit one of two free throws to push North to a 75-71 lead, but E.J. Waller hit a big three from the right corner with 24.9 seconds left to pull Moore to within 75-74.

 

Moore allowed about 5 seconds to run off the clock before fouling North's Justin Powell. North Oldham - which had a horrible night at the line, making just 11 of 25 for 44% - was bedeviled again as Powell missed both. Moore had the chance to take the lead, but opted to launch a three from deep in the left corner, which was blocked by Powell. Moore was forced to foul quickly, and fouled Ian Higdon with six seconds to play.

 

Not a bad situation for Moore, because Ian Higdon came into the contest just 33% from the charity stripe, and had hit just 2 of 5 free throws so far in the game. But the freshman - who continues to impress as one of top upcoming freshmen in the 8th region - made like a senior and coolly dropped both free throws through the net, giving North a 77-74 lead with 6.4 seconds to play. Still time for Moore to get off a good look.

 

As Moore brought the ball into frontcourt, North's Dallas Roberts fouled Moore's Green with just 3 seconds to play. Green made the first, and - in a bit of a surprise - made the second to pull Moore to 77-76.

 

Moore promptly fouled North's Thomas Ashton with 2.1 seconds left. Ashton missed both free throws, and Moore rebounded. But Moore never got the chance to get off a Hail Mary shot - Ashton stepped into the lane and stole the outlet pass to seal the win for North Oldham.

 

North had a strong shooting game for three quarters, hitting 27 of 53 shots for 50.9%. But the North Mustangs went just 4 of 12 in the fourth. Free throws were an adventure, and 6 of 15 shooting in the fourth helped to open the door for Moore. Justin Powell led North in scoring with 24 points, but hit just 9 of 21 shots and 5 of 11 at the line. The Higdon brothers, however, were impressively efficient, combining for 30 points and 18 rebounds on 13 of 16 shooting. Both impressed with their post moves.

 

Senior Rae Von Vaden led Moore with 17 points; Dowan Green and Jarrah Anderson both had 16. Moore shot the ball pretty well, hitting 25 of 57 from the field, including 8 of 20 (40%) beyond the arc. 17 of 23 at the line (74%)

 

Turnovers were costly for Moore; the Moore Mustangs had 15 turnovers, unofficially, about twice that of the North Oldham Mustangs.

 

North improves to 3-1. Moore falls to 4-2.

 

CM

Looking at North Oldham’s schedule, they’re going to be playing some teams a lot better than Moore over the next few weeks! King of the Bluegrass and the Lexington Catholic tournament are loaded.

Looking at North Oldham’s schedule, they’re going to be playing some teams a lot better than Moore over the next few weeks! King of the Bluegrass and the Lexington Catholic tournament are loaded.

 

I think North Oldham still has a ways to go - but of course, that's par for the course for a lot of teams in the second week of the season. I think they are still trying to figure out roles on the team since Justin Powell joined the team, which seems to be the biggest challenge.

 

That said, Powell seems to be trying to force it a bit when North is struggling in the game. I think that gets back to the team trying to learn its roles. Too easy for other players to fall into the habit of watching the star...

 

A major concern for North - especially given their offensive philosophy - is the poor free throw shooting. North has some good free throw shooters - but the guys shooting the most FTs are going to be those interior players. North's bigs are great shooters from the floor, with outstanding offensive moves. But they are struggling mightily at the line and that has to improve if North is to make a deep run.

 

This team oozes "home run" potential, but they have a learning curve, which I think is to be expected. If the 8th Region tourney were held today, I'm not sure they would even make the tournament, given the depth and quality of the 29th district. But the region isn't today - it is at the end of February / first of March. If this team develops as Levitch expects them to, they could be one of the top teams. They have inside strength, capable outside shooters, and a "go-to" player.

 

It'll be a journey, but Goshen fans have every reason to be excited about this team.