Basketball

Indians Stumble With 1-2 Week Amid Tough Stretch

The up-and-down season for the Jackson Indians continued this week as they sandwiched a win with a pair of losses.

The win-loss-win-loss revolving door continued for the Jackson Indians this week, as they played three games, losing the first, winning the second and losing the third. On Monday they lost 64-41 to Charleston at home before hitting the road the next day, only to rebound with a 61-33 victory against Marquette. But the pattern continued on Thursday as they fell 57-47 against Central in New Madrid. The stretch has now reached double digits, with the Tribe trading off wins and losses for 10 straight games.

The first game of the week started off rough as the Charleston Blue Jays went off in the opening frame with a 14-4 run, putting Jackson in an early double-digit hole. Things were better for the Indians in the second, but not good enough to cut into the lead, as they fell 14-13 in the quarter. Judd Thoma stepped up with six points and Blayne Harris hit a big three, but Jackson still found themselves trailing 28-17 at the half.

 

The break would offer no relief, as the Blue Jays turned up the heat in the third and outscored the Indians 19-11 to extend their lead. Jackson hadn’t led at any point in the game, and that wouldn’t change in the fourth. They were outscored once again, this time 17-13, and it led to a 64-41 loss.

The big guns were off in this one as Harris had just nine points to co-lead the team with Steven Schneider, and big man Clayton Ernst was held to just four points on two buckets. Thoma had eight points to round out the top scorers, but it was the first game all season Jackson didn’t have a double-digit presence.

The Indians fortunes would change in a hurry though, as they rebounded nicely the next night at Marquette. Thanks in large part to their big guns returning to form, and some quality team defense, as witnessed by the 16-2 first quarter in favor of Jackson. They followed that up with a 15-11 frame in the second and managed to accumulate a substantial 31-13 halftime lead.

After the break the Tribe kept their foot on the gas with another 16-point effort, but the Mustangs fought back a bit with their strongest offensive tally. Still, it was only 12 points, so the Indians increased their lead even when Marquette was at their best. The fourth quarter offered little drama, but Jackson still didn’t let up. They managed 14 more, held the Mustangs to eight, and cruised to the 61-33 victory.

Harris was back to his old form in this one, going 5-of-8 from downtown and racking up a game-high 24 points. Ernst rebounded as well (pun intended) with nine points after going 4-of-5 from the floor and grabbing nine boards to lead the team. Thoma chipped in with eight points, six rebounds and three steals.

So with back-to-back wins on the horizon once again, the Indians had to take on a tough New Madrid squad, and the 15-7 Eagles stuck it to the visitors. They came out flying in the first and racked up a quick 17-6 lead, setting up Jackson with an early mountain to climb. The Tribe fought to a draw in the second, as both teams put up 16, but it still left them with a 33-22 deficit at the break.

The halftime speech must have got the Indians back on track a bit, as they had their best ratio of the game in the third, finally outscoring New Madrid by a mark of 12-8, but the momentum didn’t last long. The Eagles won the fourth-quarter battle 14-13 and were able to hang on the the lead that they so greedily enjoyed all game.

Harris led the way again, but this time had just 13 points. Gavin Holdman was the only other player in double figures, as he picked up 10 to go along with his five rebounds. Ernst led the team with eight boards, but was held scoreless in a game for the first time this season. Thoma had seven points, but shined on defense with three rebounds, five deflections, five steals and a block.

The Indians will look to shake this one off and try to string a couple of wins together next week against Sikeston and Webster Groves before the District Tournament kicks off.

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