JUCO basketball: No. 7 Warriors fall short at No. 5 Vincennes
Nov. 20—VINCENNES, Ind. — The seventh-ranked Indian Hills basketball team wrapped up a three-game road trip on Saturday with a tough battle at unbeaten, fifth-ranked Vincennes.
Ryan Oliver came off the bench to lead the Trailblazers with a game-high 24 points, making 14 of 15 free throw attempts, as Vincennes held off a late charge by the Warriors winning 86-76 scoring the final seven points in the final minute from the free throw line.
"I'm obviously disappointed that we couldn't find a way to finish up this three-game road trip with a win," Indian Hills head men's basketball coach Josh Sash said. "Credit to Vincennes. I thought they imposed their style of play on the game. They played very physical, the pounded it inside and they get after you on the glass."
Vincennes (7-0) finished with a 48-28 rebounding advantage in the contest for the Warriors, including a pair of double-double effort from Michael Osei-Bonsu and Karyiek Dixon. Bonsu scored 13 points and grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds while Dixon added 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Trailblazers.
Amarion Nimmers led Indian Hills in the contest with 14 points as all five Warrior starters reached double figures in the contest. The Warriors cut a 14-point deficit down to 77-76 with under two minutes left, but could not completely catch Vincennes as the Warriors missed 17 of 22 shots from 3-pointer range and shot just 23-37 from the free throw line.
David Hermes added 12 points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds despite dealing with foul trouble midway through the second half. Trevion LaBeaux, IHCC's early-season leading scorer, finished 11 points before fouling out while Kheni Briggs and Braden Sparks each added 10 points apiece for the Warriors.
"We struggled to stay out of foul trouble against their physical play," Sash said. "I was very proud of our guys fight, especially in the second half. There has been a lot of adversity for our team over the course of this seven-day road trip. I believe it will pay off for us in the long run."
Indian Hills (4-2) returns home on Tuesday to host Kansas City-Kansas at 7 p.m.
