Columbus North jumped out to a double-digit early in Saturday afternoon’s boys basketball game against East Central.
The early lead that the Bull Dogs built was big enough for them to hold onto in a 60-42 victory. The win gives them a seven-game winning streak.
“We had a really good start. Our guys were really locked in. I really loved our start, and I thought we finished strong,” North coach Paul Ferguson said.
“Overall, we played a really good game. We got careless a little bit in the second and third quarters. We needed to be more ball-tough. It’s some things to learn and grow from that. Overall, I liked the way we started and liked the way we finished.”
The Bull Dogs (13-5) utilized the full-court press early, and it helped them cause turnovers and easy transition baskets to go ahead 10-0 with under six minutes left in the opening quarter. They extended the lead to 15-2 until the Trojans (11-4) finally woke up and started getting into theiroffense. East Central went on a 9-3 run toward the end of the quarter until a bucket inside from Cooper Horn before the buzzer gave North a 20-11 lead.
The Bull Dogs extended the lead to 24-11 in the middle of the second quarter until a 5-0 run by the Trojans cut it to 24-16. North, however, ended the half on a 6-3 run to make it 30-19 at the half.
The Trojans got it to within 35-25 midway through the third quarter, but the Bull Dogs went on a 7-2 run to close out the third and lead 42-27. The closest East Central got the rest of the way was 49-37, but the North ended the threat with a 9-0 run to put away the game.
The Bull Dogs were led by Horn with 15 points and Sam King added 14.
North travels to South Decatur on Monday, then host Bloomington South in a game that will be critical if the Bull Dogs want to stay alive in earning the outright Conference Indiana title.
“It’s different for us because we’re not used to playing on Mondays, so we have to go into the South Decatur game with little preparation,” Ferguson said. “(South Decatur coach) Kendall (Wildey) is a really good coach. They can score a lot of points. Hunter Johnson is a really outstanding kid offensively. We’re excited for the chance to play against those guys. It’s going to be a different look next week playing on a Monday and then having three days to prepare for Bloomington South. I like getting that midweek game next week. I think it’ll help us.”
