CLARKSVILLE — Miami Trace’s defense put the clamps on Clinton-Massie and the duo of Tyrae and DeAndre Pettiford provided enough offense in a 52-42 road victory for the Panthers on Friday night in South Central Ohio League boys basketball action.
Tyrae Pettiford scored 12 of his 15 points after halftime and DeAndre Pettiford added 11 as the Panthers jumped out to an early 7-1 lead and never looked back.
Clinton-Massie struggled to score all night, connecting on only 6 first half field goals as Trace grabbed a 26-15 halftime advantage. The Panthers defense harassed CM from the onset, forcing 16 turnovers, while MT committed a mere 5.
“I give a lot of credit to their defense. They forced us into a lot of bad shots and some decisions we really haven’t made all year,” Clinton-Massie head coach Dustin Eads said. “We got rushed and we weren’t finishing around the rim.”
The defensive pressure from Miami Trace was a key in the game as the visitors forced Massie to work for every bucket.
A 5-point MT lead after one quarter ballooned to 26-15 at the break as Clinton-Massie managed just a Noah Greathouse 3-pointer and single free throw in the entire quarter.
The Panthers extended the lead to 14 points after three quarters and led by as many as 19 (49-30), before cruising to the victory.
For the game, Clinton-Massie shot 36 percent in the contest (17-of-47), while Miami Trace also hit on 35 percent (19-of-54). The Panthers’ stingy defense helped provide the edge, with 11 steals, compared to three for Massie.
The lone Falcon to get things going on the offensive end was sophomore Trey Uetrecht. CM’s leading scorer posted a double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds. Uetrecht scored 14 of those points coming after halftime.
Freshman Thomas Myers came off the bench to add 7 points and 6 rebounds for Clinton-Massie, while Bailey LeForge, Daulton Wolfe and Greathouse all scored four points apiece.
For Miami Trace, Tyrae Pettiford led the way with 15 points and 7 rebounds, while DeAndre Pettiford had an excellent floor game with 11 points, 7 boards and 4 steals.
Miami Trace improves to 8-5 overall, 4-3 in the SCOL, one-half game behind third place Chillicothe.
The Falcons are now 2-5 in the SCOL, 4-7 overall.
The Panthers are off Saturday and are at Wilmington Tuesday. Miami Trace will host Hillsboro Friday night.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
MT 16 10 14 12 — 52
C-M 11 4 11 16 — 42
MIAMI TRACE — Tyrae Pettiford 4 (1)-4-15; DeAndre Pettiford 4 (1)-0-11; Darby Tyree 2 (1)-0-7; Jacob Batson 1 (1)-0-5; Seth Leach 2-0-4; Blake Pittser 1-1-3; Mitchell Creamer 0 (1)-0-3; Keondrick Bryant 0-3-3; Cameron Carter 0-1-1; Skyler McDonald 0-0-0; Brad Card 0-0-0; Tiante Connell 0-0-0; Ian Herbert 0-0-0. TOTALS — 14 (5)-9-52. Free throw shooting: 9 of 20 for 45 percent. Three-point field goals: T. Pettiford, D. Pettiford, Tyree, Batson, Creamer. Combined field goal shooting: 19 of 54 for 35 percent. Three-point field goal shooting: 5 of 15 for 33 percent. Turnovers: 5. Rebounds: 34 (11 offensive). Assists: 8. Steals: 11. Blocks: 3.
CLINTON-MASSIE — Uetrecht 8-2-18; Myers 3-1-7; Greathouse 0 (1)-1-4; Leforge 2-0-4; Wolfe 1-2-4; Demier 1-0-2; Chroning 1-0-2; Weis 0-1-1; Boyd 0-0-0. TOTALS — 16 (1)-7-42. Free throw shooting: 7 of 14 for 50 percent. Three-point field goal: Greathouse. Combined field goal shooting: 17 of 47 for 36 percent. Three-point field goal shooting: 1 of 15 for 6 percent. Turnovers: 13. Rebounds: 37 (10 offensive). Assists: 5. Steals: 3. Blocks: 2.
