By Cort Reynolds
LEIPSIC__The visiting Ada High School boys basketball team rallied in the second half only to come up just short 57-54 at Leipsic in a tight Northwest Conference contest on February 9.
The Bulldogs trailed 17-10 after the initial stanza, and fell behind 31-21 at halftime.
Yet a 17-11 third quarter pulled Ada within 42-38 heading to the fourth period.
The Bulldogs managed to tie the Vikings 51-51 late in the contest but never could take the lead. Leipsic outscored the visitors 6-3 down the final stretch to pull off the win.
Ada had a last chance to tie the game in the final seconds, but was unable to force overtime.
The purple and gold won the fourth quarter, 16-15.
Ada dropped to 3-15 overall and 0-6 in the NWC with the tough defeat. Meanwhile, the Vikings improved to 9-9 and 4-3 in the NWC after the close victory.
“We played really hard and gave ourselves a chance,” said Bulldog third-year head coach Vince Halliday. “It was the closest game we have played all year.
“We haven’t been in situations like that, so hopefully we learn from it,” said Halliday. “We had the ball with a chance to tie it, but couldn’t execute.”
Ada sophomore Zach Zimmerman poured in a career-high 26 points to lead all scorers.
“It was nice to see Zach have a big game; hopefully that will give him some more confidence as we close out the year,” said Halliday. Zimmerman sank 10 field goals, including two triples, to pace the Bulldog offense.
Bulldog freshman Carson Conley scored 12 points.
“Conley really stepped up and played well,” noted Halliday.
Freshman playmaker Kolton Dysert added eight markers.
Ada played the second half without injured sophomore post Slade Gossman. He scored four points before hurting his knee on the last play of the second quarter.
Jayce Brecht, a 6-3 junior, led the Vikings with 21 points. Junior Tyler Lammers contributed 14 markers. Sophomore Brevin Brandt added 10 markers.
Both teams sank 16 two-point goals. Ada knocked down five triples, while Leipsic nailed three treys.
The Vikings converted 16 of 28 at the foul line (57 percent). Ada hit on seven of its 10 charity stripe attempts (70 percent). The nine-point Leipsic advantage at the free throw stripe helped make the final three-point difference.
The Ada reserves lost 37-27 to drop to 8-10 overall and 0-6 in the NWC this season.
The Bulldogs (0-6 NWC) play at first-place league foe Spencerville (14-4, 6-0 NWC) next Thursday, February 15 as part of a girls/boys varsity doubleheader.
“Spencerville is really good,” said Halliday.
The Bearcats downed visiting Allen East 68-48 Friday night. They lead the NWC by 1.5 games over Bluffton (5-2). AE and Crestview are tied for third at 4-2, followed by Leipsic (4-3) and Columbus Grove (3-3).
Ada then visits Temple Christian (7-11) Saturday, Feb. 17 in a non-league bout.
“Temple is a team a lot like us that we know pretty well,” said Halliday. “It should be a close one.”
Ada 54 (3-15, 0-6 NWC)
Oldfield 0 0-0 0, Zimmerman 10 4-4 26, Hickman 0 0-0 0, Dysert 3 1-1 8, Green 0 0-0 0, Blankenship 1 0-0 2, Gossard 1 0-0 2, House 0 0-0 0, Conley 4 2-3 12, Gossman 2 0-2 4, Lawrence 0 0-0 0.
Totals: 16-5/7-10/54. 3-pointers: Zimmerman 2, Conley 2, Dysert 1.
Leipsic 57 (9-9, 4-3 NWC)
Lomeli 1 0-1 2, Paris 1 0-0 2, Brecht 6 8-9 21, Brandt 3 2-2 10, Schroeder 1 2-6 4, Lammers 5 4-10 14, Bejarano 2 0-0 4.
Totals: 16-3/16-28/57. 3-pointers: Brandt 2, Brecht 1.
1 2 3 4 F
Ada 10 11 17 16 54
Leip 17 14 11 15 57
JV: Leipsic 37, Ada 27.
