By Mike McGraw
Executive Director
SHELBYVILLE – Those who don’t value tradition do not understand the power it possesses. The Dec. 29 championship game of the Rush-Shelby Shootout was a classic case in point.
Class 2A top-ranked Heritage Christian, a three-time defending state champion and nationally ranked, was matched against Rushville. The 3A No. 5 Lions are a quality team in their own right, having lost only once this season heading into the game. Nonetheless, on a player-by-player basis, they could not begin to match the talent of the heralded Eagles.
What they did have was tradition. Rushville was a perennial state power long before most of the Heritage Christian players were even born. That type of heritage breeds character, and that in turn eliminates fear.
Heritage Christian, thanks to some character of its own, survived this thriller at Shelbyville by a score of 53-49. But you can bet the Eagles traveled home with a new-found respect for small-town Indiana pride.
This contest was a grind-it-out, possession-by-possession slugfest. Rushville was determined not to allow Heritage Christian’s vaunted transition game to determine the outcome, nor were the Lions going to allow HC’s defensive pressure to speed up their own offense.
They won the battle on both counts. In fact, the majority of the few transition baskets scored in the game were in Rushville’s favor.
The biggest run by either team was seven points. The largest lead by either team was also seven points, a short-lived Heritage Christian advantage late in the game.
The game was sloppy early, but not because of carelessness. Both teams’ defenses quickly established that points on this night were to be earned. The result was a back-and-forth battle that found Heritage Christian holding a 17-16 edge midway through the second quarter.
It was in the waning minutes of the half that the Lions firmly announced they were not going away any time soon. Rushville outscored Heritage Christian 9-3 down the stretch, including the last seven points, to take a 26-20 lead at intermission.
Runs do not intimidate teams like Heritage Christian. They simply make the Eagles angry.
The Eagles charged from the locker room to start the third period with a 9-0 run that propelled them to a 29-26 advantage. That was the point where most teams crack, unable to match the efficiency and poise of the Eagles.
Rushville is not most teams.
The Lions responded with a 10-2 run of their own to hold a 36-31 lead late in the quarter. Despite battling turnovers throughout the quarter, Rushville managed to maintain the advantage to the end of the period at 38-37 heading into the fourth stanza.
The defensive intensity in the early minutes of the fourth quarter was impressive, to say the least. The teams crawled to a 41-41 tie with five minutes remaining. That is when Heritage Christian, in the person of potential Miss Basketball Kelly Faris, showed some character of its own.
The 5’11” senior had been frustrated offensively all night. But at crunch time – like all great players do – Faris found another way to influence the game.
In the next two minutes and spanning roughly five possessions, every shot that came off the rim at either end belonged to Faris. Her exploits were enough to propel the Eagles to a 45-41 lead, and that small margin was all Heritage Christian needed to seize control of the game.
The Eagles spread the court offensively and lived the final minutes at the free throw line. Six of their last eight points came at the charity stripe.
The strategy worked perfectly into the final 90 seconds of the game. The Eagles stretched their advantage to seven at 51-44 and seemed comfortably in control. Then it nearly backfired.
After Rushville scored to cut the margin to 51-46, Heritage Christian connected on only one of its next three attempts from the stripe. When the Lions sank a 3-pointer, it was suddenly 52-49 with just less than 30 seconds to play.
But Rushville was forced to foul again on the ensuing trip, and the Eagles connected on one of two to make it a two-possession lead with 12 seconds to play. Tremendous perimeter defense kept the Lions from even getting a shot in the waning seconds.
With Rushville’s defense geared to stop Faris, senior Claire Freeman stepped up as the big weapon for Heritage Christian with 24 points. Faris, despite being harassed all game, finished with 12 markers.
Rushville was led by Alexa Bess with 16 points and Morgan Herbert with 13.
After the game, Rushville coach Melissa Marlow was disappointed but very proud of her team. Her comments are in the video player on this page.
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