North Union’s Owen Davis (13) goes up against a Shawnee defender. The Wildcats fell to the Springfield-area school.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Bob Putman)
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North Union had trouble all night finding an offensive pace and in the end that led to 51-47 loss to Springfield Shawnee.
“We didn’t have any patience,” NU coach Brian Terrill said. “When we didn’t have anybody open we were trying to force the basketball.”
That lack of patience led to numerous turnovers, sometimes without even getting a shot.
“When you try to force stuff, bad things will happen,” Terrill said.
Another factor that played to the plus side for the Braves was their ability to connect from behind the three-point arc.
Led by five three-point goals from senior guard Patrick Fultz, Shawnee scored eight times on extra-point shots, while North Union was limited to just three.
Both teams struggled to find offense in the first quarter as neither was able to score for the first three minutes.
North Union’s Zach Vernon ended the scoreless streak with a driving two-pointer and Aaron Krebehenne followed with another drive, giving the Wildcats a 4-0 lead.
Shawnee bounced back to tie the game at eight.
A three-point goal from Richie Bolander and a dunk by Max Parish in the final 50 seconds had North Union on top at 13-8.
The Wildcats held a 20-16 cushion following a steal and layup by Krebehenne with 2:35 left in the second quarter.
The Braves, however, scored the final five markers of the frame to take a 21-20 lead into the intermission.
The lead bounced from one side to the other in the third quarter.
A three-point play by Owen Davis gave NU a 26-25 lead.
Fultz’s trifecta pushed Shawnee to a 29-28 lead with 2:20 left in the frame.
There was only one basket the rest of the quarter and it was an inside score by Vernon, allowing North Union to take a 30-29 into the final eight minutes.
Fultz dropped in a trio of treys to start the fourth quarter, but North Union kept battling back and trailed 38-36 following a Davis layup.
Shawnee was able to take a 45-38 margin, helped by a three-point goal from Mason Griffith.
North Union made a closing run, getting baskets by Davis and Vernon to trail 49-45 with 15.3 seconds remaining in the game.
The Wildcats could not get any closer and fall to 14-4 on the season. Shawnee upped its record to 11-7.
“We made too many mistakes and that didn’t give us a chance to win,” Terrill said. “We beat ourselves and that is the worst feeling.”
Vernon led North Union with 15 points, while Davis counted 13 and Krebehenne tallied 12.
Fultz led all scorers with 16 points.
Shawnee won the junior varsity game 55-43.
Miles Hull and Tyler Huff had 17 and 10 points respectively for North Union.
The Wildcats return to the home hardwood on Friday against Benjamin Logan.
North Union
Draper 0-0-0, Vernon 7-1-15, Parish 2-0-4, Bright 0-0-0, Bolander 1-0-3, Davis 5-3-13, T. Krebehenne 0-0-0, A. Krebehenne 4-2-12, Hall 0-0-0. Three-point goals: A. Krebehenne, Bolander.
Shawnee
Fultz 5-1-16, Griffith 1-0-3, Crowe 2-2-7, Griffin 4-2-10, Siemon 3-4-10, Bair 1-2-5. Three-point goals: Fultz 5, Crowe, Bair.