Inconsistency dooms Tigers in sectional opener

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CAMPBELLSBURG

From the opening possession, West Washington’s boys basketball team controlled its first-round sectional matchup Tuesday at home against Crothersville.

Struggling to find any consistency on both ends of the floor, the Tigers fell 78-33 in the late game of the West Washington Sectional.

Following the tip, the Senators pushed the ball down the floor and found Hunter Sanford, who used all of his 6-foot-5 frame to throw down a dunk.

The Senators then went on a 17-3 run behind baskets from four different scorers.

A basket by Tigers senior Eli Mollet stopped the run, but Crothersville trailed by 12 at the 1:41 mark.

After eight minutes of play, the Tigers trailed 26-5.

The Senators continued pouring in the points at the start of the second quarter, as they went up 32-7 on six straight points by Sanford with 5:38 left in the half.

Mollet tallied seven of the Tigers’ 12 points in the second quarter, and they trailed the Senators 44-17 at intermission.

“They dictated the flow on both ends of the floor from the beginning,” Tigers coach Greg Kilgore said. “We talked about slowing them down and keeping the score in the 40s when the sectional came out, but I meant both scores in the 40s, not just ours. We kind of let them get position in the low post. When a team is bigger and more athletic, you get in trouble.”

The Tigers’ offense faltered through the first three minutes of the third quarter, and the Senators took advantage by going on an 11-1 run.

Kilgore played a number of underclassmen to start the third quarter.

“We wanted to get them used to the pressure of this kind of atmosphere and also put some pressure on the upperclassmen,” Kilgore said. “I think the upperclassmen played with more effort when they went back in. We’ve been notorious all season of playing better once we get down because there’s no pressure. I really hate it for them to go out this way, but we talked about it all week that West Washington might be playing better than anyone else in the sectional.”

A 3-pointer by the Senators’ Peyton Walker put the home team up 61-21 with four minutes left in the third quarter.

Mollet dropped in a trey at the buzzer, as the Tigers trailed 72-27 after 24 minutes of play.

The Crothersville junior varsity team played most of the fourth quarter, as the Senators punched a semifinals ticket against Orleans on Friday.

Mollet led the Tigers with 16 points, while Noah Green topped the Senators’ scoring at 19.

With the loss, the Tigers finished 3-21 on the season.

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