North Harrison came in with an impressive start to the season, getting a 75-37 win over Tri-County. They struggled against Princeton, losing 62-49. They got off to a good start, only for Princeton to turn on a suffocating press and go on a second quarter rampage. By the time the dust had settled, North Harrison was down 22 points early in the third quarter. To their credit, they fought back against the Blue Tigers and got it down to 12 at one more before falling by 13.
Novinger came in as a solid team which had won 18 games two years ago and 16 games last year. They had quality wins under their belt so far over Grundy County, Green City, and Putnam County, while their losses were to defending GRC East Champion Milan and powerhouse La Plata.
Chris Sandstrom scored four straight points to put the Wildcats up 4-3 early, but then Steven Willhite hit Logan Craig inside and back to back steals by Brett Emig made it 9-4 with 4:45 left. All of a sudden, the Shamrocks realized they could play basketball with Novinger.
The Wildcats fought back to tie it at 11 when Ben Ferrell hit a facial three, but Steven Willhite missed a three, followed his shot, got the board, and got it to Logan Craig to break the tie again. Grant Claycomb connected in the high post to put North Harrison up 15-11 after one.
The margin stayed between two and four points until Gavin Garrett scored from inside off a pass from Grant Claycomb, and Claycomb hit Logan Craig inside for a three point play to make it 24-17 with 3:30 left. North Harrison led 29-23 at the break.
Novinger went to man to man to start the second half, but at first, nothing worked as Steven Willhite connected from the left side off a pass from Grant Claycomb and Brett Emig hit two free throws. Emig got the hot hand, getting six in the quarter, and Logan Huitt got a steal and aired one out to him to make it 38-25 with 3:21 left.
All of a sudden, Novinger hit back to back threes and went to a trapping defense that North Harrison hadn’t seen, and by the end of the third, they were right back in it, down only 40-33. They were swarming, pressing, and getting turnovers, getting as close as 42-37 at one point.
Logan Craig carried the team on his shoulders and Brett Emig scored after Craig rebounded his own missed free throw to make it 50-40 to temporarily restore order. But then Caden Smith hit a triple with a hand in his face for Novinger, sparking a 9-0 run capped by a steal as the Wildcats were jumping passes at will. Grant Claycomb’s free throw with 53 seconds left made it 51-49 with 53 seconds left, but Chris Sandstrom’s drive with 33 seconds left tied it up at 51.
Novinger went to a box and one on Steven Willhite, but North Harrison ran the clock down to eight seconds before calling a timeout. Grant Claycomb took the ball to the top of the key and found Brett Emig on the left wing. He drove to the baseline and hit an eight footer with a hand in his face as time expired to give the Shamrocks the win. He also hit a 3-pointer last year to send North Harrison to overtime against Grundy County, a game that the Shamrocks won.
Brett Emig had 18 points to lead the Shamrocks. Logan Craig had 17, Steven Willhite 10, Grant Claycomb 6, and Gavin Garrett 2.
Steven Willhite had seven blocks.
Brett Emig, Steven Willhite, and Logan Craig all had 9 boards. Logan Huitt had 2, and Grant Claycomb had 1.
Grant Claycomb and Steven Willhite had 6 assists. Brett Emig had 3, Logan Craig and Logan Huitt 2, and Gavin Garrett 1.
Grant Claycomb had 5 tips. Brett Emig had 3, Gavin Garrett and Logan Huitt 2, and Logan Craig 1.
Brett Emig had 5 steals for the Shamrocks. Logan Craig and Steven Willhite had 3 each, while Logan Huitt had 1.
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