ARCANUM — A decisive third-quarter surge proved the difference Friday night as the Arcanum Trojans pulled away for a 53-39 Western Ohio Athletic Conference victory over the visiting Mississinawa Valley Blackhawks.
“We could have gotten blown out in the first half,” said Mississinawa Valley head coach Jeff Vaughn. “Unfortunately, we came out real flat in the third quarter.”
Arcanum opened the game strong, jumping out to a 10-2 lead midway through the first quarter, but the Blackhawks quickly responded. Mississinawa Valley outscored the Trojans 14-5 over the remainder of the period to take a 16-15 edge after one quarter.
Cing Scott led the Blackhawks’ first-quarter response with seven points, including a three-pointer and a perfect 2-for-2 showing at the free-throw line. Elliot Seubert added six points, also going 2-for-2 at the stripe, while Jaxin Beanblossom chipped in three. Arcanum’s scoring came from seven Jace Mote points and a pair of Charlie Weiss three-pointers.
The Blackhawks continued to build momentum in the second quarter, edging the Trojans by one point to carry a 25-23 lead into halftime. Scott scored seven more points in the period, including his second three-pointer of the night.
“The kids played hard the second quarter,” Vaughn said. “One of our assistants said it best — you played the best quarter of the year and the worst quarter of the year in the same game — and he’s right.”
Arcanum head coach Kevin Brackman acknowledged the momentum shift at the break.
“Whether we like it or not, history tells us we’re a second-half team,” Brackman said. “I like that it’s that way. I wish we could put together a better second quarter, but Mississinawa came out, saw the ball go through the rim, and had momentum going into halftime. So we challenged our guys again.”
The Trojans were dealt an early blow late in the second quarter when 6-foot-7 sophomore post Ben Hamilton went down with a knee injury and did not return.
“Ben went up to finish around the rim, and his leg buckled — his knee buckled,” Brackman said. “We’re hoping to get good word.”
With Hamilton sidelined, Arcanum responded emphatically. Junior floor leader Jace Mote ignited the Trojans in the third quarter, scoring seven points as Arcanum dominated the frame 21-6. Matthew McCans added five points, Gideon Garno and Cameron Ball scored four apiece, and Weiss chipped in two, pushing the Trojans’ lead to 44-31 entering the fourth quarter.
“He is growing, he is maturing, and he distributes the ball really well,” Brackman said of Mote. “Tonight, when his number was called, and Ben went down, he found a way to get to the cup and score.”
“The third quarter just absolutely killed us,” Vaughn said. “They came out and responded, and we did not.”
Arcanum sealed the win at the free-throw line in the final period, going a perfect 5-for-5 to take the quarter 9-8 and secure the 53-39 conference victory.
“We had guys step up when we needed to,” Brackman said. “A lot of that started with full-court pressure.”
Mote led all scorers with a game-high 21 points for Arcanum, while Scott paced the Blackhawks with 16.
BOX SCORE:
ARCANUM 53, MISSISSINAWA VALLEY 39
ARCANUM – J. Mote 21, C. Weiss 8, M. McCans 6, C. Ball 6, B. Hamilton 6, G. Garno 4, C. Kessler 2 – TOTALS 17 13-20 2 53
MISSISSINAWA VALLEY – C. Scott 16, Seubert 8, Beanblossom 5, Wehrkamp 4, McGlothlin 2, Amsbaugh 2, Hardy 2 – TOTALS 12 9-11 2 39
3-POINTERS
Arcanum 2 (C. Weiss 2)
Mississinawa Valley 2 (C. Scott 2)
SCORE by QUARTERS
15-08-21-09 53 Arcanum
16-09-06-08 39 Greenville
