Boys basketball: Pike wins Marion County title

A night after its thrilling four-overtime win over No. 1 Southport, Pike didn't look any worse for the wear in Saturday's Marion County tournament championship.

For a half, anyway.

"I think when we went in and sat at halftime, we felt it a little bit," Pike coach Bill Zych said.

But Class 4A No. 9 Pike finished the job, defeating Ben Davis 54-51 at Southport Fieldhouse for its first county championship in four years. Sophomore guard Justin Roberts led the Red Devils (10-2) with 20 points and hit a pair of big shots – a short jumper and a 3-pointer from the right corner – to help hold off the Giants early in the fourth quarter after the lead been sliced to six points.

Roberts, who had 21 points in the 92-86 win over Southport on Friday, said he was ready to play another four-overtime game on Sunday if necessary.

"When we went in that third overtime (Friday), it was funny because I started thinking about that Syracuse-UConn game," he said of the six-overtime game between the schools in 2009. "But yeah, I'm not tired."

No. 10 Ben Davis (10-4) won the first meeting between the programs, 72-64 on Dec. 5. But Pike controlled the first half, taking a 38-23 halftime lead as the Giants committed 14 turnovers.

"We changed up our press a little bit (from the previous meeting)," Pike coach Bill Zych said. "I thought that made a difference and we had a little better execution on the offensive end."

Ben Davis made a game of it in the second half. Pike scored just two points in the third quarter and the Giants chipped away, pulling to 40-34 on a jumper by Stephon Matthews with 6:35 left.

After Matthews' shot, Roberts raced to the other end and buried a 10-foot baseline jumper. Ben Davis missed two free throws on its next possession and Roberts drained a 3 from the corner to push the lead back to 11 with 5:45 to play.

"I knew I was going to hit them," Roberts said. "I told my teammates the next (3-pointer) I shot, I'd hit it."

Roberts finished 4-for-4 from the 3-point line.

"He's had a good tournament," Zych said. "It's good to see the ball go through hoop for him. Maybe this will be a springboard for the second part of the season."

Ball State recruit Tahjai Teague, a 6-8 senior, added 10 points for Pike. Junior guard Justin Thomas had all six of his points in the first half, but made a big impact on the defensive end.

Ben Davis only got as close as the final score, as senior DeShon Tate hit 3-pointer at the buzzer. Tate led the Giants with 15 points.

Pike's wins on Friday and Saturday both came against potential opponents in Sectional 11. While it's impossible to know how the county title could impact the postseason, Zych said there is something the Red Devils can take away from it.

"The kids kind of have an air of confidence and they have great chemistry," Zych said. "If you watch them play they are really good with each other. They can take confidence from beating the No. 1 team in the state and a team that beat us earlier on back-to-back nights. We're a long way from March. If we have to go through both of them, we proved we can do it on two consecutive nights. That what we can take into March."

According to Marion County basketball historian Jim Pich, it was the first meeting between Pike and Ben Davis in the championship game of the tournament. Ben Davis coach Mark James, who won two titles at Franklin Central, was bidding to become the second coach to win a Marion County tournament at two schools. Carl "Blackie" Braden won it at Warren Central in 1954 and followed it with seven titles at Southport.

"I thought we played hard and with some composure and tried to make a game out of it," James said. "I thought (Zych) did a good job and I did a bad job. That was pretty much the bottom line. I'm proud that we came back and didn't quit. It always means a lot to get to the finals because it's a tough tournament, but the biggest thing is we have to learn from it."

Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriepat (317) 444-6649.

Pike 54, Ben Davis 51

Ben Davis (10-4) – Solomon 3 0-0 7, Tate 5 3-6 15, Matthews 4 1-2 9, Gillis 3 3-4 9, Shane 4 1-1 9, Deiters 0 0-0 0, Minor 1 0-0 2, Brewer 0 0-0 0, Bush 0 0-0 0, Newsom 0 0-0. Totals: 20 8-13 51.

Pike (10-2) – Thomas 3 0-1 6, Roberts 7 2-3 20, Teague 3 3-4 10, Jeffery White 3 2-4 8, Lee 1 1-2 3, Hawthorne 0 4-10 4, Jalen White 1 0-0 3. Totals: 18 12-24 54.

3-point goals: Ben Davis 3 (Tate 2, Solomon), Pike 6 (Roberts 4, Teague, Jalen White).