IMS boys hold off late WACO charge

Things were snowballing late in the game on Friday night, according to IMS boys? basketball head coach Dwight Gingerich.

IMS seemed to have a comfortable 14-point lead at halftime, but had seen that all dwindle away near the end of the game.

An old-fashioned three-point play from WACO senior Duncan Pickard capped off a 19-7 run, that brought the Warriors within two points of IMS. The run came on tough defense, and some mistakes due to inexperience on the IMS side of the ball, but they still had a chance to win it.

?They were cheating out on passes and we weren?t using the pass fake like we needed to,? Gingerich said. ?We have some young players out there in their first varsity time and we have some things to learn. They had that run going and we added to it by not being crisp in our execution. It added up and snowballed, and it helped the team on the run.?

With 1:30 left, IMS was coming out of a timeout, and turned to the reigning SEISC North Division Player of the Year, Eli Gingerich, to make a play.

?We just ran a line out of bounds and then they tried to trap me, and their under-the-basket defender shifted,? Eli said. ?I saw Drake (Brezina) open and made the pass.?

The IMS senior finding Brezina late in the game led to an inside bucket, and after an empty possession for the WACO offense, Gingerich iced the game with a pair of free throws, as IMS defeated WACO 41-36.

After the game, WACO head coach Paul Kissell said he was happy with the way his team played in the second half, and he hopes it carries over into the rest of the year.

?This is the type of effort we need game in and game out to be successful,? Kissell said. ?We have a great group of seniors, and we have to keep improving. We have stuff to work on, so we just need to look to improve.?

IMS was led by Gingerich, who put in 19 points in the contest, while junior Nick Yutzy had 10 points and a team-high five assists, as they moved to 2-0 on the year, after a pair of grind-it-out victories.

?I think it?s a great help,? Yutzy said. ?Both teams (we played) were really scrappy and we had to play hard in both wins. It?s going to show later on near the end of the season, playing in these close games, because when it gets ugly, we find a way.?

Yutzy and Gingerich did much of their damage in the first half, as they combined for the first 15 IMS points, while Duncan Pickard kept WACO in the contest with eight first-quarter points.

IMS continued its strong shooting first half with Gingerich hitting two second-quarter 3-pointers, as IMS led 30-16 at the half.

?For us it was the recognition of the shooters,? Kissell said. ?Dwight (Gingerich) was getting open looks for Yutzy and (Eli Gingerich), and we made an adjustment. We had a great effort out of Gabe Black and Bryce Achen. We wanted to limit them to one shot.?

WACO?s comeback bid fell short, but the Warriors were led by Pickard?s 15 points in the contest.

?Duncan is a scorer and likes to make things happen,? Kissell said. ?I call him a change-up because he?s not overly quick, but he has great hands and knows how to make moves that are different for defenders. He?s going to have a solid senior year.?

WACO played against New London on Saturday but fell 63-42 in the matinee contest.

The Warriors will face Louisa-Muscatine, while IMS will take on New London on Tuesday night.