Tri-Valley surges past Sheridan
DRESDEN — It took Tri-Valley more than three quarters to find its rhythm on Friday night.
But, once the Scotties did, visiting Sheridan had no chance at slowing them down.
Tri-Valley opened the fourth quarter on a 16-2 stretch and outscored the Generals 22-4 over the final eight minutes in a 52-36 victory in the Muskingum Valley League Big School Division clash.
Erik Neal led the charge, scoring eight of his team-high 16 points in the final stanza for the Scotties (4-1, 3-0 MVL). Neal split a pair of free throws to open the fourth, and Aaron Frueh tracked down his miss on the second free throw. That offensive rebound eventually found Neal again, whose hoop put Tri-Valley ahead for good, 33-32.
He also hit a 3 after two offensive rebounds on another possession, while Frueh and Terrell Darden combined for eight points as Tri-Valley flipped a 32-30 deficit entering the fourth into a 46-34 lead.
Raine Rodich stopped that spurt with a hoop at the 3:53 mark of the fourth for the Generals (1-2 MVL), but they didn't score the rest of the way.
The Scotties made 8 of 12 field goals with only one turnover in the final quarter — they had 21 giveaways in the game — while Sheridan was held to 2-of-12 shooting in the final eight minutes.
Tri-Valley coach Todd McLoughlin credited better defense and ball handling in turning around his team's fortunes.
"Our communication on defense was much better, and we did a good job rebounding, especially on the defensive end," McLoughlin said. "We had a much better flow on offense. We didn't have much flow in the first three quarters, and a lot of that was due to turnovers.
"Both teams played with a lot of effort," he added, "but we got up and down better in the fourth. We did a good job finishing possessions with points."
The play of Neal, Frueh and Darden was crucial for the Scotties. Neal finished the game 7-of-7 from the field with six rebounds and a pair of assists, Darden scored six of his 12 in the fourth and Frueh contributed seven points off the bench.
Max Lyall also had nine points for the Scotties, who made 23 of 42 field goals.
"Erik played well, and Aaron is our energy guy. He's not afraid to do the dirty work, and you need a guy like him on your team," McLoughlin said. "Terrell has played well for us, and Jayden (Walker) is starting to take the reins.
"This group has a lot of potential, but there's room for growth," he added. "We only had three guys back with varsity experience. We need to improve our basketball IQ and learn how to play together. We saw that in the fourth quarter so that's a positive sign."
Both sides struggled to start the game, as Tri-Valley led 8-5 after one quarter where the teams were a combined 6-of-22 from the field.
The Scotties used an 8-2 to open up a lead in the second, and Lyall hit a 3 to make it 19-9, but Sheridan carried momentum into the locker room when AJ Winders hit a 3 at the horn to pull the Generals within 21-14 at the half.
Frueh's 3-point play sparked a 7-0 run for Tri-Valley that grew its lead to 30-20 midway through the third, but Sheridan scored the final 12 points of the frame. Reid Packer started the spurt with a hoop down low, while Reed Coconis hit a short jumper and found Rodich for a 3 that put the Generals ahead 32-30 going to the fourth.
Rodich posted a team-best 15 points and Coconis added eight for Sheridan, which was 15 of 47 from the field and out-rebounded 40-18.
bhannahs@gannett.com; @brandonhannahs
This article originally appeared on Zanesville Times Recorder: Tri-Valley tops Sheridan behind dominant fourth quarter
