SEYMOUR, INDIANA — It was a “tale of two teams” kind of season for this year’s New Albany squad.
The young Bulldogs looked like a Top 20 contender in wins over Carmel, Zionsville and Evansville Reitz, and close losses to Jeff and Floyd Central.
And they looked average at times — against Evansville North (a home loss at the buzzer), Seymour (overtime win at home), and other teams they’ve historically dominated.
Unfortunately, the same woes that derailed the Dogs when they struggled this year — primarily poor shooting from the field and free-throw line — were evident in Tuesday’s opening-round sectional tilt against Jennings County.
In the end it was too much to overcome, as the Panthers made the plays down the stretch and walked away with the 59-53 victory to avenge a regular season defeat. The loss was New Albany’s first in the opening round since 2005.
“Whenever the ball didn’t go in for us this year, that’s when we usually came up on the losing end or at least not playing as well you would like,” New Albany coach Jim Shannon said. “I thought all year long we played pretty good defense, but our offense at times sputtered. There were nights we looked really good like, ‘These guys could beat anybody.’ There were nights when anybody could beat us. That was one of those nights tonight.”
The Dogs (14-10) had won at Jennings on Feb. 6 as Kaden Stanton hit 5-of-9 three-pointers. Jennings didn’t let him get going from distance on Tuesday, however. Stanton hit only 1-of-2 three-pointers, with most of his team-high 16 points coming on drives to the basket.
Driving was New Albany’s best option. The Dogs shot 13-of-28 on two-pointers but hit only 7-of-19 from distance, including a 3-of-4 effort from freshman Jackson Streander, who subbed in for Maddox Schmelz as Shannon looked for more offensive firepower.
Overall, the Dogs made 20 of 47 fields goals for 42.5%. Jennings was 21-of-42 overall (50%), including 5-of-16 from three-point land. New Albany’s Tucker Biven made his first three-point attempt but struggled through a 2-of-9 effort from distance while scoring 12 points.
“I thought we got good looks,” Shannon said. “We put Streander in in the second half because they weren’t guarding Maddox, and he made some big shots. He played great.”
The Dogs got off to a good start, leading 12-7 after one quarter. Jennings claimed a 22-21 lead at the half and led 35-32 after three quarters.
Streander’s three-pointer pulled New Albany into a tie at 37 early in the fourth quarter, and after Jennings scored twice, he hit again to cut the Panthers’ lead to 41-40. Jennings had another 4-0 run before Stanton’s three ball made it 44-43 with 3:43 left. New Albany then had a chance to take the lead, but Stanton missed twice from the line at 2:45, and Jennings answered with a 5-0 run. New Albany could get no closer.
In the earlier contest, Jennings guard Carson McNulty scored most of his 14 points from distance. On Tuesday, he turned playmaker early and savior late. With New Albany looking to foul and extend the game, the Panthers found ways to get him the ball, and McNulty made 6-of-6 free throws in the final 2:20. Jennings hit 14-of-17 free throws in the quarter and 18-of-22 for the game. New Albany was 6-of-11 from the line.
“They spread us out pretty good and set a lot of ball screens, and we had a little bit of trouble defending them,” Shannon said. “They hit some big shots. Their big kid (Jacob Vogel) stepped out and busted a couple threes. Really, all of their kids hit some big shots. They took it to the basket really well.
“I thought they got all the 50-50 balls. I really thought they outplayed us in every facet of the game. And we still had a chance. I give our kids credit for coming back.”
It was a disappointing end for New Albany’s lone seniors, Trey Hourigan and Julien Hunter. Hunter, a four-year starter, scored four points on 1-of-4 shooting. Hourigan, a three-year starter, scored 7 points on 3-of-10 shooting.
“(Juju and Trey) go out of here having won a lot of basketball games,” Shannon said. “They’re both great kids, awesome kids. They’ll go on to be successful at the next level wherever they choose to go, and certainly be successful in getting a degree and be successful in their community as husbands and fathers. They’re good people. I have nothing but admiration for them.”
