Eagles Don’t Fall, Finish Strong Against Parkway South
Sullivan used a 10-2 run to close the third quarter and opened the fourth with seven straight points Friday, surging to a 76-67 victory against Parkway South.
The Eagles (5-1) thrived from the free throw line. They shot 26-31 (84 percent) and it created a buffer as Parkway tried to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter.
Cody McKinney scored 27 points and was a perfect 14-14 at the stripe. Austin Frye poured in a season-high 14 points, Austin Lewis added 11 and Landon Hoffman scored 10. McKinney, Frye and Hoffman each had three treys.
Carter Adams scored nine, Jacob Rohrer had two and Cameron Cunningham one. What Rohrer lacked in points he made up for in drawing charges, much to the dismay of Parkway South.
“I thought our kids played great,” said Eagles head coach Dino McKinney. “That’s a great basketball team. I thought our kids boxed out really well. We didn’t shoot well in the first half, but in the second half we came out better. If we get a lead on someone, I think we’re in good shape.”
The Patriots had a clear size advantage with 6-9 forward Isiah Esker, 6’6 forward Mitchell Ellebrecht, 6-4 forward Kaleb Winkel and 6-4 guard Adam Sommer. Sullivan struggled at times to contain Parkway on the glass, but ultimately stood tall against their fallen opponents.
McKinney said the Eagles switched it up defensively to counter Parkway’s size.
“We didn’t chase guys out so we could double the post and I think our kids worked hard to take charges,” he said.
Parkway led 10-8 after the first quarter by feeding Esker in the paint and getting putbacks. Sullivan took a brief 8-7 lead, but Winkel’s 3 with 3:14 left would be the final basket of the period. The teams swapped offensive fouls on their final possessions. Both had three-point plays wiped out.
The Patriots went up 14-8 early in the quarter on a finish by Greg Rollins and a putback by Esker, but Sullivan would march back. Hoffman and McKinney launched 3’s and Rohrer had a second chance bucket to tie it 16-16 with 3:58 remaining.
Parkway continued using their advantage on the offensive boards with putbacks by Winkel and Esker, grabbing a 23-21 lead with 32 seconds to go. Frye drew contact on a shot fake to convert one of two free throws. Parkway turned the ball over on an errant pass with six seconds. The Eagles inbounded to McKinney, who dribbled up, drove into the paint and kicked it to the corner for Frye, who splashed a go-ahead 3 at the buzzer.
In the third, McKinney knocked down a pull-up 3 from the top of the key. One possession later, he drove baseline and spotted Frye on the wing. Frye passed off to Hoffman for an open trey and a 38-32 lead.
Parkway answered with a 7-0 run to go up 39-38 on two free throws by Esker with 3:30 left, but Lewis reestablished the lead with another 3. Sommer tied the game at 41-41 with two free throws. McKinney put the Eagles up for good on a stepback jumper.
At the 1:50 mark, the game paused while referees sorted out a technical foul by Parkway. Both teams shot two free throws. McKinney and Rollins each hit both. McKinney drained the final four points of the quarter to give the Eagles a 51-43 lead.
Sullivan’s run continued into the fourth. McKinney converted two free throws and Frye hit a 3 to open a 56-43 lead. McKinney drew a charge and it led to another basket by Frye.
Parkway South had fallen — hard. The Patriots tried recovering from a limp four-minute stretch, but did so with Esker sitting on the bench with four fouls. Parkway did cut the deficit to seven, 63-56, with three minutes left, but the Eagles kept knocking down their free throws.