BG boys beat Perrysburg to clinch NLL title (2-11-11)

The old adage that defense wins championships was proven once again in Bowling Green’s Northern Lakes
League showdown with Perrysburg.
On a team filled with talent and scorers, it was the Bobcats’ defense that was the difference in their
75-62 win inside a jam-packed and steamy BGHS gym Friday night. PHOTO GALLERY

The win
clinched an outright NLL title for BG, 15-2 overall and 12-0 in the NLL, the school’s second NLL
championship and first since the 2002-03 season.
The Yellow Jackets, who had won seven of the previous 10 NLL titles, dropped to 10-6, 9-3.
BG’s in-your-face pressure defense forced Perrysburg into 21 turnovers, and seniors Chauncey Orr, Xavier
Brown and Max Beattie combined for 53 points for the Bobcats.
“We knew this season was our last year. We’ve got six seniors and we had to go out with a bang,” said
Orr, who finished with a game-high 24 points and five assists. “We got it on our home floor. There’s
nothing better than that.”
Xavier Brown added 16 points, who like his brother and starting center Vitto Brown, missed most of the
first half due to foul trouble.
Beattie chipped in with 13 points, and sophomore Nolan Dill provided an unlikely scoring punch off the
bench with 10 points, eight coming in the first half.
“We wanted to finish tonight,” BG coach Von Graffin said. “Last year we couldn’t get over the Perrysburg
hump … You saw it tonight, they made a little run at us.
“I am fortunate to have some pretty good players,” Graffin added. “Coaches are good when they have good
players … This year we do and we met our first goal, which was to win the league.”
Perrysburg held an early 15-8 lead after an Alec Schmenk 3-pointer with 2:59 left in the first quarter.
The Bobcats responded with a 12-2 run to end the first, capped by a steal and long-range running triple
by Orr that gave BG a 20-17 lead through eight minutes.
“I thought their defensive pressure was the difference. Chauncey (Orr) did a really nice job early both
offensively and defensively,” Perrysburg coach Dave Boyce said.
“It was definitely a momentum swing,” Boyce added. “We thought the start of the game was important,
especially with this crowd. I think we handled the start of the game pretty well, we just didn’t finish
the quarter off.”
Perrysburg continued to hang with BG in the second quarter as the Bobcats took a 35-29 lead into
halftime. Kevin Schenk scored 12 of his team-high 17 points in the first half for the ’Jackets.
But it was Orr’s 16 first-half points and Dill’s ability to knock down shots that kept BG in front.
“We had to get through the first half with Xavier and Vitto on the bench in foul trouble,” Graffin said.
“When you go into halftime and you’ve got two starters on the bench and you’re right there up six,
you’ve got to feel good about yourselves.
“Nolan Dill picked a heck of a night,” Graffin added. “You kick yourself sometimes for not getting him
enough playing time, but I tell you what, tonight Nolan Dill was huge.”
BG opened the second half with baskets by Orr and Xavier Brown to build its lead to 39-29 just 1:20 into
the third quarter. A long-range 3-pointer by senior Kurt Fairchild pushed the lead to 49-38 with 2:43
left in the third.
The Bobcats held a 56-44 lead after three quarters as Perrysburg continued to struggle taking care of the
ball.
“Their guards pressured our wings very well and I think that was the difference in the game,” Boyce said.
“I thought we kept playing hard, but we couldn’t quite get over the hump. Every time we made a little
bit of progress, they hit a shot.
“They definitely got us out of sync on offense, took us out of what we wanted to do and then converted
when they had the chance. You have to give them credit,” Boyce added.
BG built its lead to as large as 62-46 early in the fourth quarter, as the game begin to get a bit chippy
towards its end.
Matt Schimmoeller added 15 points for Perrysburg, which was done in by turnovers despite shooting 54
percent (21-of-39) from the floor.
The Bobcats shot a scorching 60 percent (28-of-47) from the floor and hit 12-of-14 (86 percent) free
throws.
With the league title wrapped up, BG hosts non-league foe Toledo Central Catholic on Tuesday before
finishing the NLL with Maumee at home on Feb. 18 and at Southview on Feb. 25.
“It means a lot. We’ve made this a basketball community,” Graffin said. “It’s nice to see you can be a
good player and stay here.
“We play a great non-conference schedule,” he added. “We get back in our schedule in the conference and
it’s always a little easier it seems like … We’re playing high-quality teams every time out.”
Perrysburg hosts Toledo Start on Tuesday before travelling to Anthony Wayne Feb. 18 and closing the
regular season at home against Maumee on Feb. 25.
The ’Jackets won the junior varsity game, 59-49. Perrysburg’s Shane Edwards had a game-high 25 points
while Austin Bishop added 13. Evan Gardner had 18 points for BG and Andrew Herringshaw added 17.
BGHS 75, PERRYSBURG 62
PERRYSBURG
Milne, 0-0—0; Gordon, 1-1—3; Schenk, 3-3-2—17; Sell, 0-1—1; Meyer, 2-1-0—7; Yant, 0-0—0; Pfleghaar,
3-3—9; Dunbar, 1-0—2; Schimmoeller, 4-7—15; Schmenk, 1-1-0—5; Edwards, 0-1-0—3. TOTALS: 15-6-14—62.
BGHS
Beattie, 2-3-0—13; X. Brown, 6-4—16; Fairchild, 0-2-0—6; Harringshaw, 0-0—0; Dunn, 0-4—4; Orr, 8-2-2—24;
V. Brown, 0-0—0; Peet, 0-0—0; Dill, 5-0—10; Augsburger, 0-2—2. TOTALS: 21-7-12—75.
PERRYSBURG 17 12 15 18 —62
BGHS 20 15 21 19 —75
Junior varsity: Perrysburg, 59-49.
PHOTO
GALLERY