GALION, Ohio — Considering the hole his team had dug for itself, Galion coach Colby Bright was surprisingly level-headed.
The Tigers had been there before.
Trailing by 12 points with three minutes to play in the third quarter, Galion rallied for a 64-61 win over Shelby in non-conference action Tuesday at Galion.
“We’ve been in that situation before and come back from big deficits,” Bright said. “If we play hard, we’re never out of a game. The kids played with heart and never gave up on themselves.”
The Tigers (5-3) trailed 50-38 after Shelby’s Brady Hill connected on a 3-pointer with 3:31 to play in the third, the Whippets’ fourth triple of the period. Galion closed the quarter on a 6-0 run, then scored the first six points of the fourth to pull even at 50-50 on a Chase Cooke layup with 6:02 to play.
“We sped them up a little bit and caused a few turnovers,” Bright said. “It allowed us to score some easy buckets and get some momentum.”
Five straight points by Brock Kehres gave the Whippets (3-4) a 55-50 lead, but the Tigers responded with a 10-0 run and took a 60-55 lead on a Zach Phelps layup with 1:01 remaining.
Shelby’s Brennan Armstrong split a pair of free throws with 24 seconds left, capping a 6-2 run and cutting Galion’s lead to 62-61. Shelby fouled Phelps with 9.9 seconds remaining, but the senior missed the front end of a one-and-one. Galion’s Houston Blair came up with an offensive rebound in the ensuing scramble and hit two free throws with 2.6 seconds to play.
“Free throws at the end are always nerve-wracking,” Blair said. “My teammates have confidence in me and I have a lot of confidence in myself.”
The Whippets advanced the ball to midcourt and called timeout, but Davey Hipp’s desperation 3-pointer bounced off the rim as time expired.
“This was a big confidence boost for us,” Blair said. “It’s a big win and we needed it.”
Blair and Colton Moore each scored 15 points for Galion. Kalvin Rinehart had 13 points and eight rebounds, while Phelps and Cooke each had nine.
Hipp paced the Whippets with 14 points, including 14 rebounds. Kehres and Hill had 12 points apiece and Brandon Schneider added 11.
Rebounding Woes: The Whippets were outrebounded 33-17, much to Shelby coach Troy Schwemley’s chagrin.
“We continue to give up offensive rebounds,” Schwemley said. “Tonight it was something like 13 offensive rebounds. Last Friday against Ontario (a 61-57 loss) it was at least 16 offensive rebounds we gave up and if you saw our game this past Saturday at Sandusky Perkins (a 67-60 loss) it was the same thing.”
Attack the Basket: Schwemley was also dismayed with his team’s inability to get to the free throw line. The Whippets were 7 for 8 from the stripe, but didn’t attempt a free throw in the second or third quarters.
“It’s the same story as our last game and that’s what is disappointing,” Schwemley said. “I was hoping tonight we would learn from the Perkins game, but you pretty much witnessed the same thing.
“Our last game we shot four free throws the entire game. We’re not getting to the free throw line. We’re not getting high percentage shots when we need them.”
Opposite Directions: After starting the season 3-1, the Whippets have lost three straight. Meanwhile, Galion is 4-1 in its last five games.
