CROTHERSVILLE

Springs Valley outscored Crothersville 13-2 down the stretch to hand the Tigers a 48-38 loss in a nonconference boys basketball game Friday night.

The Tigers opened the fourth quarter on a 6-2 run and took a 36-35 lead on a steal and layup by Zane Elliott with 6:25 remaining.

The Blackhawks rallied behind 3-pointers by Logan Russell and Braden Whitaker to move on top 43-36 with 3:35 remaining.

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The Tigers finally scored on a layup by Josh Thomas with one minute remaining to set the score 46-38.

“They took the wind out of our sails,” Tigers coach Greg Kilgore said. “Once again we had to play uphill too much.

“We got down 10 at halftime, and we came out with a good game plan. We changed things up and got ourselves back in the game. Halfway through the quarter we had it down to a four-point game.

“We got three consecutive steals at the beginning of the fourth quarter when we had the lead and turned the ball back over. I told them we’ve got to value that possession when we get a steal and we’re up two. We tried to pound it inside and we turned it over. We need to be patient and get a good shot.”

Valley broke a 2-2 tie with a 6-0 run early in the game to lead the remainder of the first half.

A 3-pointer by Lane Wienhorst brought the Tigers within 12-9 at 2:15 of the first period before the Blackhawks moved on top 7-9 at the end of the period.

Valley scored the first basket of the second period, and extended its lead to 26-14, and held a 27-17 lead at the half.

The Tigers shot only 6-for-24 from the floor in the first half, while the Blackhawks made seven field goals in the first period and 11 for the half.

The Tigers shot 3-for-14 in the opening period and Kilgore said his team shot seven of those from 3-point land.

“We settled for too many 3s. We’ve got some good 3-pointer shooters: Lane, Josh, and Conner (O’Sullivan),” he said.

The Tigers opened the third quarter on an 11-2 run to close to 29-28 on a basket by Josh Thomas at 3:20 on the clock. During that time the Blackhawks shot 1-for-8 and had six turnovers.

Thomas’s basket came off a steal; and it followed a 3-pointer by the 6-1 freshman.

Thomas topped the Tigers in scoring with 16 points, and Wienhorst added 10.

Thomas was Crothersville’s leading rebounder with seven as Valley held a 27-23 advantage on the boards.

The Blackhawks (4-0) had balanced scoring as Whitaker scored 13, and MCelfresh and Logan Russell scored 10 each.

The Tigers (1-3) will host Borden tonight for a Southern Athletic Conference game.