(Greensburg, IN) – The Greensburg Pirates forced Jac-Cen-Del into several turnovers right out of the gate and jumped out to an early nine-point lead before holding off a 3rd quarter charge and coming away with a 72-50 win over the Jac-Cen-Del Eagles in boys basketball action on Saturday afternoon.
The Pirates led 9-0 in the 1st quarter before the Eagles’ Darian Grieshop hit a three-pointer from the left wing to break the seal for the Eagles.
Greensburg led at all stops: 20-10 after the opening period; 38-29 at halftime despite being outscored by JCD 19-18 in the 2nd, and 54-44 heading into the final quarter.
Jac-Cen-Del started hitting shots in the 2nd quarter and forced several Greensburg turnovers, and carried that momentum into the early part of the 3rd quarter. That’s when the Eagles whittled the Greensburg lead down to two points thanks to hitting several three-pointers before the Pirates were able to hit shots convert free throws, including several three-point plays.
The Pirates outscored the Eagles 18-6 in the 4th quarter. Late in the contest, JCD coach Scott Smith and his Greensburg counterpart Collin Rigney started emptying their benches.
Jacoby Miller led Greensburg with 15 points, followed by Max Buening with 14. Ethan Smith chipped in 11 points, and 6-foot-11 senior forward Jonah Hellmich added 10.
Jac-Cen-Del’s Grieshop led all scorers with 20 points – 10 before halftime and the rest after the break. No other JCD player reached double figures in the scoring column.
The host Pirates were 8-for-19 at the free throw line for 42%, while the visting Eagles went 6-of-10 for 60% from the stripe.
With the win, Greensburg improves to 8-10. They’ll be back in action next Friday, February 13 at Triton Central.
Jac-Cen-Del falls to 3-13 with the loss. The boys from Osgood wind up their three-game road trip when they visit South Decatur on Tuesday, February 10.
JCD claimed the JV contest 43-36.