CHARLOTTESVILLE — Identical conference records (6-1), identical winning streaks (five games) and pretty close overall records (14-5, 15-5) did not equate to a competitive game at Eastern Hancock High School Tuesday.
Eastern Hancock scored the game’s first five points, led by 22 at halftime, and defeated Blue River Valley 62-30 in a matchup of teams that came in tied for second place in the Mid-Eastern Conference.
The Royals, receiving votes in the Class 2A Associated Press poll, improved to 15-5 overall and 7-1 in the conference. The Vikings, ranked No. 7 in Class 1A, had their five-game streak snapped. They dropped to 15-6 and 6-2.
Wapahani (18-1, 7-0), ranked No. 2 in Class 2A, leads the MEC. It gave the Royals their lone conference loss, a 52-51 decision on a buzzer-beater on Jan. 6 in Selma. The Raiders still have conference games remaining at home against Daleville (8-10, 3-5) Friday and at Shenandoah (8-11, 3-4) to end the regular season on Feb. 24.
“Defensively, I thought we were outstanding. That’s about as well as we’ve played defensively all year,” Eastern Hancock head coach Aaron Spaulding said of his team’s performance Tuesday against the Vikings. “We were really active and made things difficult on every pass, on every catch we were right there.”
In the first half, thanks to the pressure defense from the Royals, Blue River had more turnovers (13) than points (12).
Toward the end of the third quarter, the game went to running-clock timing rules (when a team has a 35-plus point lead). The Royals took a 53-17 advantage on a Grant Gray bucket with 1:53 remaining in the period.
Gray had a strong night all around. He led all scorers with 18 points, including 4 of 7 from 3-point range. On the defensive end, the 6-foot-3 senior had five blocked shots. He also had five rebounds.
“We had a lot of energy, and a lot of energy on defense,” Gray said. “The defense created good offensive opportunities. Sometimes the off-ball movement was stagnant, but I think we still played well.”
“He shot the ball well. He shot it better than anybody for us (Tuesday),” coach Spaulding added. “I thought he was really active on the defensive end and probably played his best game of the year. A lot of times I find when you are energetic on the defensive end, the ball tends to go in a little more on the offensive end. He was outstanding (Tuesday).”
After going 2 of 4 with a pair of first-quarter 3s, Gray hit his next five shots, two in the second quarter, including another 3, and his first three attempts of the second half, which also included a bucket from long range.
Gray came in averaging 8.3 points per game.
All five Eastern Hancock starters had at least six points and three scored in double figures. Jacob Spaulding had 13 points. Edric Miller scored 10. Silas Spaulding finished with eight and Kayden Ruble had six.
Blue River Valley senior Wyatt Thornburgh, who came in averaging 18 points per game was held to only 10, most of any Vikings player. Layke Leonard, who averages 12.2 points per contest, was held to six.
Along with being the Royals’ sixth straight win, it was the fifth of that stretch of 26 points or more, as well as the fifth where an opponent had a total in the 30s or less.
Eastern Hancock returns to action Thursday with a road game at New Castle. The game was originally scheduled for Saturday, but was moved up so it would not conflict with the Eastern Hancock girls basketball team playing in Saturday’s Shelbyville Semi-State.
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Eastern Hancock 62, Blue River Valley 30
Blue River Valley;6;6;7;11;—;30
Eastern Hancock;16;18;19;9;—;62
Blue River Valley (15-6, 6-2): Landen Gibson 1 0-0 3, Layke Leonard 3 0-0 6, Wyatt Thornburgh 4 0-0 10, Ethan Blackburn 0 0-0 0, Connor Swoveland 1 0-0 2, Brian Walradth 1 0-0 2, Zac McAbee 1 0-0 3, Brayden Swoveland 2 0-0 4, Cole Conatser 0 0-3 0. Totals: 13 0-3 30.
Eastern Hancock (15-5, 7-1): Edric Miller 2 4-4 10, Grant Gray 7 0-0 18, Kayden Ruble 3 0-1 6, Silas Spaulding 4 0-0 8, Jacob Spaulding 6 0-1 13, Luke Morris 2 1-1 5, Jayden Stine 0 0-0 0, Caiden Willis 0 2-2 2, Charlie Halcomb 0 0-0 0, Luke Schilling 0 0-0 0, Eli Manship 0 0-0 0. Totals: 24 7-9 62.
3-point goals: Blue River Valley 4 (Thornburgh 2, Gibson, McAbee); Eastern Hancock 7 (Gray 4, Miller 2, J. Spaulding)
