RANDY HISNER
WZBD.com
Bellmont’s Jack Scheumann scorched the nets for a career-high 42 points Saturday afternoon at the Teepee, but Bishop Luers put four players in double figures to nip the Braves, 63-58.
The game was billed as a barn burner, and it lived up to the billing. The action was fast and physical, both teams leaving it all on the floor despite having less than 24 hours recovery after hard-fought Friday night contests.
The 2A fourth-ranked Knights (17-4) threatened to run away with it early over the 3A fifth-ranked Braves (18-4). Danny Kelly hit three-pointers the first three times he shot in the first quarter, staking the Knights to a 9-1 lead at the 5:37 mark.
And that was just the beginning of their long-range assault. Less than a minute after Kelly’s streak, Dereon Truesdale buried a trey from the left wing to make it 12-1.
Scheumann countered with the first of his four three-pointers on the day, and Dylan Velez followed with a fast break layup to cut the lead to 12-6.
But in the next two minutes the Knights’ Carmani Davis and Drelyn Truesdale hit threes—interrupted by another one from Scheumann—to make Luers six-for-six from outside the arc and give the visitors a 20-9 advantage.
Bellmont coach Payton Selking had told his players in the pregame to protect against the drive by the lightning-quick Knights and make them show they can hit from outside. He started to question his own advice during the Knights’ hot streak. “They hit the first two and I thought ‘Oh boy, here we go.’ Then they hit four more and I thought ‘OK, maybe they shoot it better than we originally thought.’”
The Braves couldn’t catch a break. After they deflected Zach Calderon’s jumper with two seconds left in the period, Drelyn Truesdale grabbed the ball in mid-flight and flung it into the basket at the buzzer to put the Knights up 24-11.
Then things got better. The Braves reversed the momentum with a 9-0 run to start the second quarter. Scheumann bookended the run with two pairs of free throws. Velez (short jumper) and Kord Fuelling (a three from the left corner) provided the points in between. Scheumann scored nine more points in the period, two coming on a spectacular spin and drive at the 4:39 mark, as the Braves won the quarter 18-8 to pull within three at 32-29.
Scheumann opened the third quarter scoring with a layup off a back cut to trim the lead to one. The Braves would get within one a couple more times—35-34 on Gavin Krull’s old-fashioned three-point play and 39-38 on Scheumann’s jumper in the lane—but each time the Knights held firm.
A 6-0 Luers run pushed the lead to seven at 45-38 with 2:53 left. The crucial sequence in the rally came when the Knights’ full-court press forced two Bellmont turnovers within six seconds, each one resulting in a Luers layup. Wesley Javins, who led Bishop Luers with 16 points, added three inside buckets late in the period to help the Knights stretch the lead to 51-43.
Zach Calderon hit a deep three 20 seconds into the fourth quarter to put the Knights up by eleven, but then the Braves went on a 15-6 run to make it 60-58 with 2:01 left. Scheumann scored 13 of those rally points, including nine on a three from the top of the key and two three-point plays.
At the 1:10 mark, Velez drew a charge on Hunter Meek, and the Braves had the ball with a chance to tie or go ahead. Scheumann missed on a drive and then fouled Davis, who hit one of two free throws. After a Bellmont turnover, Fuelling fouled Kelly, who dropped in both free throws with 12 seconds to go for the final margin.
Scheumann played a phenomenal game, scoring in every way imaginable. He was 8-of-12 on twos, 4-of-9 on threes, and 14-of-17 on free throws.
Selking was impressed. After one of Scheumann’s three-point plays in the last quarter, he had to stop coaching for a moment and just appreciate what his leading scorer was doing. “I just kind of smiled and shook my head, like ‘This isn’t normal. Don’t take this for granted. Don’t think this is going to happen every year.’ He’s a special basketball player and a special kid.”
Selking was glad for the challenge that Bishop Luers presented. “They’re a good basketball team,” he said. “We knew it was going to be a battle, we knew it was going to be fast paced and physical. But that’s what we signed up for. These are the type of games that make you better. These are the type of games that get you ready for a tournament run. I was proud of our toughness, our resiliency after a tough first quarter. I thought we learned a lot about ourselves today.”
Bishop Luers coach Seth Coffing praised the Braves. “Bellmont is having a heck of a year,” he said. “Coach Selking is doing a great job with them. They’re playing really well together. They have seniors who have been playing together a long time.”
Of course, he liked his own team’s performance too. “It was really gritty,” he said. “I thought our guys overcame a lot—foul trouble, maybe a few not very smart plays. But when it mattered at the end of the game, we made some really, really big plays.”
Fuelling and Krull each had five points for the Braves. Velez added four, Andrew James two. Drelyn Truesdale scored 15 for the Knights. Kelly had 11, Dereon Truesdale 10, Davis eight, Calderon three.
Bishop Luers won the JV game, 49-42. Beau Baker led the Braves with 18 points. Maddux Miller scored eight. Keyon Crowe had 19 for the Knights. The Braves’ JV team is now 12-5.
The Knights took the freshman game, 53-27. Derick Vogel paced the Braves with 16 points.
Bellmont will travel to Bishop Dwenger next Tuesday.