Eli Wrightsman
The bad news is, Columbus North won’t be the Conference Indiana boys basketball champions this year. Worse news, the Bull Dogs have been hit by the injury bug.
North was without two rotational players before the game tipped off, and then lost another huge piece of the puzzle for almost three-and-a-half-quarters. Bloomington South took advantage and hit shots from outside on the perimeter and in the paint for a 58-41 win.
With the win, Bloomington South clinched the outright Conference Indiana title.
The bigger concern is not the loss by the Bull Dogs (11-7, 2-2), but the injury to leading scorer Austin Perry early in the first quarter. Perry had to leave the game with an ankle injury and did not return. Ibar Baker (knee) and Anderson Horn (ankle) were injured in Tuesday’s win against Seymour and did not play Friday.
“We had a lot to overcome,” North coach Paul Ferguson said. “Bloomington South played a good game, but really it was an opportunity for some of our younger guys and depth pieces to really experience the next level of competition, so it was good. There was a lot of takeaways from this although the score didn’t turn out the way we wanted it, but there’s some good learn and grow moments for a lot of our guys that will help us down the stretch. We’re just building more depth right now.”
The Bull Dogs (11-7, 2-2) had their hands full with Duncan Combs. The 6-foot-6 versatile wing was a force on the glass and on the perimeter. Combs finished with a game-high 22 points with four 3-pointers.
“Duncan played a great game, but it also showed how we need Anderson Horn and Ibar Baker,” Ferguson said. “They’ve been great for us, and without them, we struggled to rebound. We struggled to defend. We had guys in new positions, so a lot of learn-and-grow moments. We’ll get better from this, hopefully get healthy and bounce back next week.”
Jack Whaley, Caleb Ferguson, Zach Fedor and Eli Wrightsman all scored eight points to lead the Bull Dogs. Ben Kriesant added seven.
North won’t have a lot of time to rest with three games next week beginning with a home matchup against Perry Meridian Tuesday, and then on the road against Bloomington North and on the road against Franklin Friday and Saturday, respectively. They’ll wrap up the season Feb. 26 at home against Covenant Christian.
Bloomington South 58, Columbus North 41
Bloomington South;5;9;21;13;—;58
Columbus North;14;6;8;13;—;41
Bloomington South (16-5, 5-0): Jack Clark 3 2-2 10, Nate Lukes 4 0-0 10, Carter Graham 1 0-0 2, Max Surdam 2 3-4 8, Rylan Stikeleather 1 0-0 2, Julius Smithers 0 0-0 0, Duncan Combs 9 0-0 22, Matt Tierney 2 0-0 4. Totals: 22 5-10 58.
Columbus North (11-7, 2-2): Jack Whaley 1 6-6 8, Caleb Ferguson 1 6-6 8, Zach Fedor 3 0-0 8, Eli Wrightsman 4 0-1 8, Austin Perry 0 0-0 0, Ben Kriesant 2 3-4 7, Owen Coomes 0 0-0 0, Keighan Collier 0 0-0 0, Max Johnson 1 0-0 2. Totals: 12 15-16 41.
3-point goals: Bloomington South 9 (Combs 4, Clark 2, Lukes 2, Surdam). Columbus North 2 (Fedor 2).
