Wildcats spoil Devils' home opener, 74-65 in boys basketball

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith
11-26-2010

HANOVER (74) Derek De St. Jean 6-1-13, Jeremy Pedersoli 2-0-4, Max Johnson 3-0-6, Cameron Brady 5-4-17, Nick Bollenbacher 5-11-23, Zach Rush 4-2-11. TOTALS: 25 (18-36) 74.

LOWELL (65) Jason Parker 2-1-4, Mark Izrael 6-2-14, David Stang 0-1-1, Clark Mikesell 1-2-4, Austin Magley 3-1-7, Austin Richie 10-9-31, Kyle Richwalski 1-1-3, Spenser Kersey 3-1-7, Zack Van Hook 0-0-0. TOTALS: 23 (17-22) 65.

FREE THROWS: HANOVER (18-36, 50%) Bollenbacher 11-19, Brady 4-6, Rush 2-5, DeSt.Jean 1-4, Pedersoli 0-2; LOWELL (17-22, 77.2%) Richie 9-11, Mikesell 2-2, Izrael 2-2, Stang 1-2, Magley 1-2, Richwalski 1-2, Parker 1-1.

REBOUNDS: HANOVER (31) De St. Jean 10, Bollenbacher 6, Brady 5, Rush 4, Johnson 3, Pedersoli 3. LOWELL (36) Richwalski 11, Stang 7, Izrael 6, Kersey 4, Richie 4,Magley 2, Mikesell 2.

ASSISTS: HANOVER (10) Bollenbacher 6, Brady 2, Johnson, Pedersoli; LOWELL (6) Richie 4, Magley 2..

STEALS: HANOVER (9) Bollenbacher 4, Rush 2, Brady, De St. Jean, Pedersoli; LOWELL (10) Richie 3, Parker 2, Izrael 2.

BLOCKED SHOTS: HANOVER (2) De St. Jean, Rush; LOWELL (1) Richwalski.

3-GOALS: HANOVER (6) Cameron Brady 3, Nick Bollenbacher 2, Zach Rush; LOWELL (2) Austin Richie 2.

TECHNICAL FOULS: LOWELL (1) wrong jersey number - 5:28 - 3rd quarter.

FOULED OUT: HANOVER (1) Zach Rush (4th Q) 0:47 left; LOWELL (4) David Stang (4th Q) 5:37 left; Jason Parker (4th Q) 2:33 left; Kyle Richwalski (4th Q) 1:33 left; Austin Magley (4th Q) 0:32 left.

LOWELL, IN (11-24-2010)  One thing you know for sure when you're getting ready for a game is how much you want to win. You don't know how much the other team wants to win. When Lowell raced out to a 33-15 lead in the second quarter, it was obvious how much they wanted to take the season debut for new coach Nate Richie and a lively local pre-holiday crowd. But nobody in the building knew how much Hanover Central, playing on the road with basically just six players, wanted to win.

The Wildcats, who seemed hopelessly out of the game, playing without starting guard Luis Norman and with leading scorer Zach Rush limited by a knee injury, roared from behind for a memorable 74-65 victory that will be remembered for years to come.

Lowell scoring leader Austin Riche scored 31 points, but Rush, Nick Bollenbacher, Derek De St. Jean, Cam Brady and unknown sophomore Jeremy Pedersoli pulled themselves even and then pulled away in a controversial game in the noisy Lowell gym.

Lowell led 33-15 before HC rallied with a 9-0 run that included a three-point shot by Bollenbacher, son of coach Rod Bollenbacher. Rush, playing with a brace on his knee, rallied HC as De St. Jean, HC's 6-foot-5 center, held his own against Lowell's 6-foot-9 duo of center Kyle Richwalski and forward David Stang.

With senior Cam Brady taking up the scoring that Rush (who scored 18 points per game last season) usually provides, Hanover scored 11 in a row to take a 42-41 lead with 4:20 left in the 3rd quarter and HC then scored 10 in a row to take a 52-43 lead with 30 seconds left in the third period.

"We called a time out. We were down 18," said coach Bollenbacher. "I said that 'guys, we've got to turn it around now.' Maybe not in those exact words. Zach came in and gave us a little spark. You can just see the fire coming out of the time out. Zach was screaming for intensity and Nick was yelling 'D-up' to everybody. We were getting out-rebounded so badly, but we started double teaming them and getting the ball out of Richie's hands. Cam hit some 3's at crucial times. We got some more stops and forced some turnovers."

Hanover sank just 18 of 36 free throws or they'd have won by more. But Lowell lost four players to fouls, and since they were two men short (starting forward Nick Kijurna and starting guard Danny DeBoer) beginning the night, the Devils ended the game with rookies on the floor and they were not happy about it.

HC senior Derek De St. Jean said the Wildcats were tying to bother Richie because, as shorthanded as they were, they felt that was the only way they could stop him.

"We tried to do it last year," De St. Jean said. "We thought that if we shut down the rest of the team that he'll try to do it all himself. He'll shoot from anywhere. We wanted to fluster him and I think we did."

Richie, who averaged 28 points a game last season, scored 31 including 20 in the first half. Hanover's Pedersoli, a 6-foot sophomore, was assigned the job of covering the 6-foot-2 Richie and he took it to heart. Not only did he guard Richie, but during free throws and other dead ball periods, Pedersoli stalked him. The HC player walked around the court wherever the Lowell star went, standing in front of him and facing him. When Richie would walk away from him, Pedersoli would run around in front of him, again standing less than a foot away and facing him. There was some shirt-tugging during game action. Borderline legal play, but definitely an effort to provoke the Lowell senior. The idea was to annoy Richie and throw him off his game. The three game referees allowed the tactic even though the Lowell bench called it unsportsmanlike conduct. Since four Lowell players were fouled out of the game, the Devils were understandably upset.

"I guess I'm not too well liked over there," said Austin Richie after the game. "I just think it reflects on them to play like that."

Coach Nate Richie, in his first varsity game, was a little less charitable with the treatment of his younger brother.

"We had four guys fouled out," he said. "We weren't allowed to play. The fouls took us out of what we do. We had to rely on Austin too much and he's all for that, but he was exhausted. We should have won by 20."

"And there's a difference between a guy guarding somebody and a guy face-guarding him, continuously taunting him and tugging his shirt. Look, I could have done something similar but I'm not going to do that. To each his own."

Lowell's 6-9 Kyle Richwalski had a career-best 11 rebounds and foreign exchange student Mark Izrael added 14 in front of a well-entertained crowd of about 1,000. Four Lowell players fouled out, which didn't set well with the home bench. Hanover played without starting guard Luis Norman, who will be eligible next month. Lowell played without starters Danny De Boer and Nick Kijurna, who should be healthy enough to play by mid-December.

Coach Richie was still encouraged.

"Our guys have to understand, we're going to be a dangerous team. We were short two guys and we had four guys fouled out. Our guys have to keep their heads up. I saw a lot of good things. I hope other people did too. We're going to be a dangerous team. I know this game is the Super Bowl to them (Hanover) but it's not to us."

Lost in the dust-up, which included some post-game pushing and shoving, was the risk Rush is taking by playing. Doctors have told him different things about his knee and he's going to try to play with it.

"I won't know until the first quarter," said Rush, who isn't sure whether he has a tear or a straight in his knee. "Even tonight, it buckled and the doctor put some tape on it a little tighter to the brace and I went back in. It hurts, but it's not horrible. A little pain's good. A lot of pain is bad. Surgery would mean 6-8 weeks. When they asked me how I am, I just said I'm good. I didn't say how good. There's no way I can just sit and watch."

Traditionally, games between Hanover and Lowell in all sports have been friendly. The love was missing from this one.

"Cross-town rivalry," said De St Jean. "They're different towns. But it's straight down (U.S.) 41. It was a grudge match. There's a rivalry."

DEVIL-CAT NOTES: Lowell hopes to have 6-foot-3 forward Nick Kijurna and 5-10 guard Doug De Boer by the middle of December. When four players fouled out against Hanover, freshman Zack Van Hook made his varsity debut.

Hanover's Derek De St. Jean said that the HC basketball turnout was weak this year and he was surprised.

"We only had about 13 guys try out this year," he reported after the game in Lowell. "We didn't cut anyone. No one came out. The support is there. Everyone is saying,' Hey, lets go out for basketball.' but nobody tried out. It's up to us to do all the work.

"Just between us three seniors, Nick, Cam, Max and the sophomore Jeremy. We're all trying to step up. Right now (without Norman) we have no depth on the bench. We're just trying to go hard. Use the time outs and the breaks at the quarters."

De St. Jean's nickname is 'Big Baby'. Big Baby. He's even got it written into his letter jacket.

"When he first came in as a freshman," remembered coach Bollenbacher. "The seniors all called him 'big baby.' I went over to him and said, 'I'll make them stop if you want me to.' He said 'No. Its okay. I like it.'"