SHELBY, Ohio — Clear Fork scored its first points of the game before any time had run off the clock and scored in bunches once it started ticking.
Jay Swainhart and Jared Schaefer had 15 points apiece and the sixth-seeded Colts steamrolled to an 81-51 win over No. 9 Galion in Division III sectional semifinal action Wednesday at Shelby High School.
The Tigers were assessed a pregame technical because of a uniform violation — Galion was the designated home team but brought its blue road uniforms. The Colts, who came out in their black and green road uniforms for pregame, hustled back to the locker room and changed into their home whites.
Instead of the traditional jump ball to start the game, Clear Fork was awarded two technical free throws with eight minutes still showing on the first quarter clock. Chance Barnett connected on both freebies and the Colts had a 2-0 advantage.
Clear Fork was just getting started.
The Colts connected on six 3-pointers in the first quarter — four by Swainhart and two by Schaefer — and led 26-20 after one.
“We were making the extra pass and playing great team offense,” Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel said. “We scored 26, but we gave up 20. I told them I didn’t want to continue trading baskets.
“Defensively, we really stepped it up in that second quarter.”
The Colts (6-16) outscored the Tigers (3-20) 24-4 in the second and led 50-24 at the half.
“That was probably our best defensive quarter,” Bechtel said. “We were active in the passing lanes. We got a lot of deflections, then we came up with the 50-50 balls and finished at the basket, too.”
Clear Fork led 32-22 early in the second before scoring 16 unanswered points during a three-minute stretch to close the quarter.
“I think we had about six turnovers in that second quarter on top of shooting maybe 25 percent from the floor,” Galion coach Matt Valentine said. “That was the big difference in the game right there.”
Shooting Clinic: Clear Fork connected on 31 of 51 field goals on the evening. The Colts were 8 of 21 from beyond the arc and a perfect 15 for 15 from the free throw line.
“They shot lights out,” Galion coach Matt Valentine said. “We knew a couple of their kids could shoot very well.”
Justice Rebman scored 10 of his 14 points in the first half for the Colts. Barnett had 11, while Brennan South added 10.
The 81 points were a season-high for the Colts.
“I don’t think we’ve shot the ball like that all year,” Bechtel said. “It seems like everybody who put it up, it was going in.
“That has been our Achilles heel all year. We’ve had open shots. Tonight we hit them.”
Growing Pains: Galion lost virtually everyone from last year’s sectional championship team. Valentine was hired two weeks before the season started.
“We got better individually as players,” Valentine said. “We’ve got to learn how to play together as a team and we’ve got to get physically stronger.”
Jack McElligott led Galion with 14 points. Isaiah Alsip had 12, while Chase Cooke added 10 and Gage Lackey had nine.
Up Next: Clear Fork, which won its first postseason game since 2013, will play top-seeded New London for a sectional championship at 6:15 Friday at Shelby. The Colts’ last sectional title came in 2004.
