Ranked Tigers maul Cougars
By Greg Hoffman

The Class 2A, fifth ranked Northwestern Tigers (12-2) took care of business Friday as they put the visiting Carroll Cougars (6-9) away in the second half en route to a 71-39 rout.

The Cougars stayed with the Tigers early as a trey by Jacob Craig gave Carroll a brief 3-1 lead before a 13 to 8 run by Northwestern put them in the lead at 14-11 after one.

The Cougars never regained the lead, but were able to pull to within one several times in the second quarter, the last being at 18-17. From there, Northwestern outscored Carroll 13 to 6 to go up 31-23 at half-time.

Carroll shot the ball well, going 3 of 4 from behind the arch and 9 of 16 overall, while Northwestern was 3 of 5 on treys and 13 of 30 overall. Carroll's effort in the first half was hindered by 14 turnovers.

In the second half, Northwestern took over, outscoring the Cougars 40 to 16. In the third period, the hosts opened up a 43-32 advantage at the top. In the fourth quarter, the Tigers used a 22-2 run to finish off the Cougars.

Carroll had only one player in double figures. Jason Hazel led the way with 11 points. Riley Eller and Craig had 7 points each. Carroll's shooting fell off in the second half and for the game the team was 15 of 38 (40%), while Northwestern was 28 of 57 (48%). The Cougars committed 25 turnovers and were out rebounded 30 to 20, 12 to 4 on the offensive end.

Friday night, county rivals Carroll and (1-13) Delphi will face of on Delphi's court. Carroll leads the series 29-21. JV tip-off is at 6:30 p.m.

Tiger JV defeats Cougars

The JV version of the Cougars dropped below .500 at 7-8 for the season after losing 47-31 to Northwestern.

The Cougars trailed 15-11 after one, but they were out scored 21-9 in the second and third quarters, trailing 28-17 at the half and 36-20 after three. The Cougars played their hosts even in the fourth period.

Adam Spesard was the lone Cougar in double figures with 12 points. Justin Brown added 5 points.