Jim Walker

jim.walker@irontontribune.com

The Marines are the frontliners, but the National Guard Reserves are pretty good, too.

The Ironton first team plays well, but their reserves are pretty good in their own right and they proved it Friday as the Fighting Tigers beat the Rock Hill Redmen 63-42 in an Ohio Valley Conference game.

“We had good balance tonight. We had a great effort by our second unit in the first, second and third quarters to put that game away. We ran the floor well and had great pressure defense,” said Ironton coach Chris Barnes.

“We got a great effort from Schreck, White and Vance off the bench. Sheridan had seven assists and we only had six turnovers tonight. At the end of the third quarter and into the fourth quarter our defense got a little laxed, but the first two and a half quarters were fantastic.”

Braden Schreck and Aaron Masters each scored 10 points to lead a balanced attack. Jaxon Vance had 9 points.

Matt Sheridan had 7 assists and 2 steals, Ty Perkins had 7 points, 6 rebounds, 4 blocks and 3 steals. Ethan White pulled down 8 rebounds and Landen Wilson had 6 points, 6 rebounds and 2 steals.

Owen Hankins had 15 points — all in the second half — for Rock Hill (3-1, 1-1). Hankins and Brayden Adams both sat out most of the first half in foul trouble.

First game looked like a championship game and we didn’t play a whole lot of guts. I wanted to get a lot of guys in. We have some depth. We play like that. We practice like that. We had 63 and we were so impatient we should have had 79.”

Ironton had only 6 turnovers.

“I start three guards and bring two off the bench, and two of those guards are freshmen. We had a good team effort,” said Barnes.

“Jaxon probably had his best practice of the year and I told him he would play. He hit some shots and he played the best defense I’ve seen him play.”       

Braydon Malone scored at the 7;15 mark to give the Redmen a 2-0 lead and it proved to be their only lead.

Lincoln Barnes and Wilson scored inside and Ironton was up 4-2. Malone scored again to tie the game and then Ironton’s Perkins made two foul shots and Rock Hill’s Noah Doddridge had a layup and it was 6-6.

But Masters hit a 3-pointer and drained a 15-footer and then Perkins’ layup put Ironton up 13-6 at the end of the quarter.

Doddridge scored and then Sheridan and Doddridge traded 3-pointers and it was 16-11.

Ironton then went on a 14-0 run to close the half and open up a 30-11 lead.

Masters knocked down another trey to start the run, White had a hustle save and fed Masters for a jumper and Schreck buried a jumper for a 23-11 lead.

White then converted a 3-point play and then Vance finished things off with a driving layup and a pair of foul shots.

Barnes’ layup began the second half before Owen Hankins — Rock Hill’s leading scorer who failed to score in the first half due to foul trouble — hit a 3-pointer and it was 32-14.

Hankins driving layup got Rock Hill within 33-18 only to have White hit a 12-footer and Perkins bust a 3-pointer and it was 38-20.

Hankins hit another 3-pointer but Schreck answered with two baskets and the lead was 42-23. Schreck then fed White for layup and Ironton had a 44-23 lead.

Hankins’ two foul shots made it 44-25 at the end of the quarter.

After a steal by Shaun Terry, Schreck followed up his own shot to start the fourth quarter and Wilson fed Vance for a layup Ironton had its biggest lead at 48-25.

Hankins and Adams got back-to-back baskets and it was 48-29.

Hankins knocked down another triple and then Sheridan and Rock Hill’s Victor Day traded layups.

“Rock Hill is a good team. They’re going to win some games. We just wore them out,” said Barnes.

On Tuesday, Ironton entertains Chesapeake and Rock Hill goes to Coal Grove.

Rock Hill 6 5 14 17 = 42

Ironton 13 17 14 19 = 63

ROCK HILL (3-1, 1-1): Noah Doddridge 3 12-2 11, Dylan Griffith 0 0 0-0 0, Owen Hankins 2 3 2-3 15, Brayden Adams 1 0 2-2 4, Trent Williams 0 0 0-0 0, Victor Day 1 0 0-4 2, Chanz Pancake 0 0 0-0 0, Braydon Malone 2 0 0-0 4, Landon Harper 0 1 0-0 3, Lane Smith 1 0 0-0 2. Totals: 15-45 7-11 42. 3-pt goals: 5-13. Rebounds: 3-O, 23-D = 26. Assists: 8. Steals: 4. Blocks: 1, Turnovers: 17. Fouls: 10 Fouled out: None.

IRONTON (2-0, 2-0): Landen Wilson 1 1 1-2 6, Matt Sheridan 1 1 0-0 5, Aaron Masters 2 2 0-0 10, Judah Barnes 0 0 0-0 0, Shaun Terry 0 0 0-0 0, Braden Schreck 5 0 0-0 10, Ethan White 3 0 1-1 7, Ty Perkins 1 1 2-2 7, Lincoln Barnes 3 0 0-0 6, Peyton Aldridge 0 0 0-0 0, Jaxon Vance 2 1 2-4 9, Braxton Pringle 0 0 0-0 0. Totals: 26-67 6-9 63. 3-pt. goals: 7-21. Rebounds: -12, D-25 = 37 (White 8, Perkins 6, Wilson 6, L. Barnes 5, Schreck 4). Assists: 15 (Sheridan 7). Steals: 12 (Perkins 3, Wilson 2, Sheridan 2). Blocks: 6 (Perkins 4, White 2). Turnovers: 6. Fouls: 14. Fouled out: None.