12-16-11
BY JACK BULLOCK
BREESE – In a game between Cahokia Conference and Clinton County rivals that on paper looked to be a very good matchup, the Central Cougars turned this potential close game into a relatively easy night on the home hardwood.

Behind 14-points and 11-rebounds from Brandon Book and some excellent long range shooting by guards Nick Graperhaus and Austin Rickhoff, the Cougars cruised to a 69-48 win over Carlyle on Friday night.

Coach Stan Eagleson's club broke open a close affair in the second quarter and rolled the Indians over with a big third quarter, taking most of the drama out of what appeared to be a real tough league test for the 9-0 Cats.

Grapperhaus and Rickhoff each nailed three 3-pointers in the win, which pushed Central's mark in the Mississippi Division of the Cahokia to 3-0.

Grapperhaus finished with 15-points while sophomore guard Jacob Timmerman added 13. Rickhoff finished with 11-points as those four Cougars led the way (including Book) as the ABV top-ranked Deep South 2A club stayed unbeaten.

Coach Eagleson's team was workmanlike on offense and defense, hitting 21-of-41 from the floor while limiting the Indians to 20-of-47 shooting.

The Cougars also forced 12 Carlyle turnovers in the win while out-boarding the visitors 32-20, allowing just six offensive rebounds by Coach Andy Palmer's Tribe.

“This is something (defensive rebounding) that we have tried to stress and we haven't always done well but we are doing a better job of it,” said Coach Eagleson.

Matt Hilmes led Carlyle with 13-points while Cody Huels added 12.

Jordan Smith and Nathan Miller chipped in nine and eight points respectively.

“I thought at the defensive end we put good pressure on them,” added Coach Eagleson. “We ran the ball up the floor and got some quick looks off the break. This was a good win over a good team.”

Breaking open a close game in the early part of the second quarter, the Cougars got rolling by using its inside-outside game.

With Timmerman getting to the basket on drives in the late part of the first quarter, Central set Carlyle up for some long range artillery.

Rickhoff nailed back-to-back 3-pointers from near the same spot near the top of the arc in consecutive possessions as Central went on a 15-2 march to push its lead to double-digits for the first time.

Grapperhaus closed that run with two treys and a 34-19 lead with 3:18 remaining in the first half.
“They (Central) have a lot of kids that can shoot it and score and they push the ball quick,” added Coach Palmer. “They don't give you many second opportunities. They did what they had to do and we didn't do what we needed to do. They are good. But I don't think they are 20-plus points better than we are.

Central pounded the ball inside the rest of the frame, getting to the foul line for four made charities by Timmerman and Book.

An Andrew Schulte stick back off of a Book missed 3-pointer finished the halftime scoring for Central as they left the hardwood leading 40-26 at intermission.

The first five points, and the outcome, were Central's to open the third quarter.

Timmerman scored on Central's first offensive possession and Grapperhaus followed that score up with a steal and a fast break lay in for a 44-26 lead which forced a Carlyle timeout.

“We've got to stay focused for 32-minutes,” Palmer added. “We got a stop on our first possession in the second half and then we turned it right back over to them.”

Book scored six points in the fourth quarter on the inside and when Rickhoff dialed long distance for a final time from the left wing as time expired, Central had ended all doubt with a 61-32 advantage.

Carlyle didn't give up and outscored Central 16-8 the rest of the way to make the score a bit more respectable.

“It was just one of those nights where not a lot went our way,” said Coach Palmer. “We didn't shoot it like we are capable of shooting it and that is just the way it goes.”

Carlyle (48) – Huels 4 1 1-2 12, Hartung 2 0 0-2 4, Miller 3 0 2-2 8, Smith 3 1 0-0 9, Hilmes 5 0 3-4 13, Jansen 1 0 0-0 2, Zachry 0 0 0-0 0, Becker 0 0 0-0 0, Walker 0 0 0-0 0.
2FG-18, 3FG-2, FT-6-12, PF-17.
Brrese Central (69) – Meyer 0 10 0-0 3, Timmerman 3 1 4-6 13, Grapperhaus 1 3 4-4 15, Becker 2 0 1-1 5, Thomas 1 0 2-4 4, Schulte 2 0 0-0 4, Perez 0 0 0-0 0, Rickhoff 1 3 0-0 11, Book 3 0 8-8 14, Stockman 0 0 0-0 0.
2FG-13, 3FG-8, FT-19-23, PF-20.
Fouled Out – Smith - Carlyle.
Technical Fouls – None.