During halftime of Thursday night’s boys basketball game at Center Grove, members of the Trojans’ football team — clad in hideous holiday sweaters and cutoff jean shorts — performed a dance routine with the cheerleaders.
Most of the rest of the night consisted of Center Grove dancing all over Franklin on the basketball court.
The Trojans (5-2) used their superior size and talent to smother the visiting Grizzly Cubs over the first three quarters, rolling to a 51-33 triumph.
“We were just coming in to make a statement for county,” Trojan senior Travis Roehling said.
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Click here to purchase photos from this galleryTrayce Jackson-Davis and Lucas Doyle opened the second period with consecutive baskets on the block, and a thunderous putback dunk by Jackson-Davis at the 5:51 mark put Center Grove up 17-9. That set off a stretch of complete Trojan dominance that saw the visitors get outscored 31-6 across the second and third quarters.
“With our scouting report, we knew everything that they were going to do, so it really helped us coming into the game,” Jackson-Davis said. “When you can call out what your opponent’s going to do, it makes them hesitant.”
Kas Oganowski scored the final seven points of the third, including a 3-pointer with four seconds to go, to give Center Grove a 43-14 advantage going into the final period.
A late surge from the Grizzly Cubs helped make the end margin a little more respectable. Franklin (4-2) outscored the Trojans in the fourth quarter, 19-8.
Roehling paced a balanced Center Grove offense with 11 points, while Jackson-Davis and Spencer Piercefield each finished with 10. Hunter Gross finished with a game-high 12 for the Grizzly Cubs, nine of which came in the fourth period.
Franklin coach Bruce Dickey is hopeful that a few days off before a trip to Rushville’s holiday tourney will help his team bounce back mentally after consecutive losses. Thursday in particular was a struggle, especially offensively.
“We didn’t manage to make a lot of baskets, so we’ve got to figure out how to get better at the rim,” Dickey said.
A 3-pointer and layup by Nate McLain, followed by a steal and a bucket from Roehling, helped the Trojans build a 9-0 lead over the first 4:03 of play. Franklin got to within 11-8 late in the first quarter after 3-pointers by Gross and Reece Thomson, but fueled by its inside dominance, Center Grove reclaimed the momentum with authority in the second.
“The size advantage definitely helped our ability to feed our posts,” Roehling explained. “That helped, because they doubled down and gave us open shots, and that just opened up driving lanes from there.”
Center Grove will return to action against another county foe when it hosts Greenwood next Friday night.
