It almost happened to Bishop Noll again.
“We’ve already lost two games in those situations this year,” Warriors coach Josh Belluomini said.
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Noll was up by one on the road at Hanover Central with 14 seconds remaining in Friday’s Greater South Shore game. But Hanover had the ball, and sophomore guard Kole Popko got an open look at a 15-footer that started spinning around the rim.
“I was getting ready for the play coming the other way,” Belluomini said.
But that shot spun out, allowing the Warriors to hang on for a 55-54 win and hand Hanover its first loss.
“All we said, besides giving them direction of what we wanted them to do, was execute,” Belluomini said of that late possession. “And they did exactly what we needed.”
The game ultimately came down to that shot, but Bishop Noll (6-7, 3-1) got big performances from its two junior forwards to defeat Hanover (9-1, 4-1).
Brandon Scott had a game-high 20 points and 15 rebounds, while Morgan Grant also had a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Warriors. Hanover had 15 points from junior guard Luke Barach.
Scott did much of his offensive damage from behind the arc, hitting five 3-pointers, the product of a daily routine he’s had since fourth grade.
“I’m in the gym at 5 a.m. every day before school, putting up shots,” Scott said.
Belluomini said that Scott’s defensive impact was just as important.
“He does a lot of good things offensively,” Belluomini said. “But his big contribution was on defense. That’s why we were able to keep him on the floor and do all of the damage that he did.”
Scott stands 6-foot-4 and Grant is 6-3, giving both a clear advantage in the rebound battle. But Grant said that he’s picked up a mental edge as well.
“Especially as a big man, you have to learn how the ball is coming off the rim,” he said. “I’ve just learned how to read it after it comes off the shooter’s hand and when it’s coming off the rim.”
Hanover led 24-23 at the half and pulled ahead 47-43 in the fourth quarter thanks to an 8-0 run. But the Wildcats struggled from the floor all game — they shot just 31 percent (19-for-62) — and coach Bryon Clouse thought a long layoff between games was a culprit.
“We haven’t played in two weeks and you could tell,” Clouse said. “This is not the team we’ve seen through the first nine games. We usually shoot much better than this. Maybe next year we need to look into playing at least one game over the break to keep everything going.”
Dave Melton is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.