When two of the county’s best players match up, the game can go many different routes.
Sometimes there’s an epic back-and-forth battle between the two, or one may thoroughly outplay the other. There’s also a often slept on third option: Unsung heros steps up and takes the game into their own hands.
Fans were treated to option three Tuesday night. Despite Winters Mill’s Owen Case and Francis Scott Key’s Jordon Fulmore battling it out, it was the depth and grit of the Falcons that made the difference as several players stepped up in the 62-43 Winters Mill win.
“Great team win,” Winters Mill coach David Wynne said. “We were missing some guys but others stepped up and I couldn’t be more proud of their effort.”
Case and Fulmore, who were teammates working out over the summer, stuck to each other from the opening tip. Fulmore used his size and athleticism, forcing Case to be more of a distributor as the talented shooter failed to get a shot off. Meanwhile, Case kept Fulmore out of the paint, making him settle for contested jump shots as the senior started the game 0-for-4.
With both finishing the opening quarter scoreless, Sam Wivell and Nat Curley stepped up big, both hitting shots to keep the Falcons offense afloat. Curley scored the Falcons’ first seven points of the game.
The Falcons had to battle without their inside man Kamden Koch, who was out with an injury. Wivell led the way with his fearlessness inside. The senior would look Eagles defenders in the eye, attack the rim and make tough inside baskets. Teammates quickly followed suit as the Falcons used a dominant second quarter to get the lead to double digits.
“I just knew I had to be in attack mode,” Wivell said. “I wanted to come in and make that immediate impact this game.”
While the Falcons missed their inside man, they still maintained a dominant inside presence as everyone chipped in. Misses were often followed up by two or three of Wynne’s guys crashing the boards, securing extra possessions on offense and closing out stops on defense.
“Key has a lot of kids that are physical, so we knew we had to match the physicality,” Wynne said. “Playing in their gym, we were gonna try to control their their home crowd and play within ourselves”
With Wivell still continuing to score, Drew Jenkins and Tommy Hinkhaus got in on the action as the Falcons quickly pulled away. Even Case, who finished with 16, got in on the scoring, finally shaking lose from Fulmore and making a deep 3-pointer that was nothing but net as the pure swish sound quieted a boisterous Francis Scott Key student section.
“I just stayed patient and waited for my opportunity,” Case said. “I didn’t mind taking a backseat and waiting my turn. I know my teammates can come through.”
Fulmore finished with just six points on 2-of-7 shooting and didn’t see the court in the fourth quarter with the game out of hand. The Eagles relied on Tyler Hanson for scoring as he finished with a team-high 17.
Despite the impressive output by Hanson, it wasn’t enough. The Falcons continued to throw everybody they had at the Eagles.
Hinkhaus again made his presence felt after rebounding his own miss and hitting a shot over three Eagles defenders. Edward Gay came in and despite the 20-point lead, the senior dove on the floor for loose balls like the game was headed to overtime.
The Falcons embodied the old adage that “rebounding is an effort stat” as they showed that their depth and scrappiness makes them able to beat anyone on any given night.
“We got guys all over,” Case said. “Guys that can shoot, guys that can score and guys that want to win.”
WM- Owen Case (16), Sam Wivell (13), Nat Curley (8), Tommy Hinkhaus (8), Drew Jenkins (6), Edward Gay (4), Silas Durham (3), Camden Deming (2) Chris Schoonover (2)
FSK- Tyler Henson (17), Braeden Haven (9), Jordon Fulmore (6), Malaki Saunders (4), Auggie Bertrand (3), Devin Miller (2), Joel Wantz (2)
