No. 3 Mt. Pleasant defeats Centerville

CENTERVILLE ? The Panthers outscored Centerville in every quarter to claim a 59-39 victory in nonconference boys? basketball last night.

?Anytime you can win on the road, it?s a big win,? Mt. Pleasant coach, Paul Rundquist, said.

This game, in particular, was no easy win.

?They came into the game 7-2, with lots of confidence,? Rundquist said. ?We had our hands full.?

Once again, Rundquist credits the team defense with the win.

?When you only allow 39 points, that?s a great defensive effort,? he said. ?We have to continue to guard like we have been, and that will help us out when the shots aren?t falling for us.?

The Panthers had no problem with shots falling last night. They were 22-for-38 (57.9 percent) from the floor, including six-for-nine on shots from behind the arc.

Their shooting percentage was higher even than their free throw percentage. The Panthers went nine-for-17 from the line (52.9 percent).

Scoring 15 points in the opening quarter, the Panthers added another 15 before the half, 16 in the third quarter and 11 in the final quarter of the game for their total.

Centerville never scored more than 12, and the Panthers kept them from double figures in the fourth quarter, allowing only nine points.

The Mt. Pleasant team also gathered 32 rebounds, allowing themselves a few extra shots and limiting the Big Reds? opportunities.

Jordan Ashton was the team?s leading scorer, putting 21 points on the board. Blake Vandenberg and Cameron Frank each chipped in eight points, while Dalton Conrad and Nick Lyon added seven apiece. Connor Shull and Logan Mulford scored three points each on the night, and Ryan Hanna scored two.

Lyon was had a team-high 10 rebounds, and Vandenberg added nine boards. Frank pulled down seven.

Frank was also the team?s assist leader in the game, dishing four to add to his season total, which is now 33.

?Cameron Frank had a nice game,? Rundquist said. ?He leads the team in assists (on the season) ? he?s doing things for us besides scoring.?

Frank also leads the team on the season with 22 steals, one of which came against Centerville.

In last night?s game, however, it was Vandenberg who had a team-high four thefts. Conrad nabbed three steals of his own, and Ashton had two.

The Panthers are on their home court once again on Friday, when they battle conference opponent Fairfield, starting at 4:45 p.m.