Connersville

The CMS 8th grade white basketball team traveled to St. Mary’s (Greensburg) on Tuesday night and battled through a hard fought matchup before coming up short, 30-26. The game opened as a defensive struggle, with St. Mary’s holding a slim 5-3 advantage after the first quarter. Both teams continued to grind in the second quarter, but St. Mary’s found a bit more offensive rhythm and extended its lead to 17-9 at halftime. The Spartans responded after the break, showing improved ball movement and defensive intensity in the third quarter. CMS took the lead 19-18, but gave up a three pointer close to the end of the quarter to trail 21-19 going into the 4th quarter. In the fourth quarter St. Mary’s extended their lead to 8. The Spartans continued to battle but couldn’t overcome St. Mary’s run in the middle of the fourth quarter, losing 30-26. We didn’t start the game the way we wanted to, but I was proud of how our kids responded. At halftime we talked about picking up the defensive pressure and speeding St. Mary’s up to force turnovers. I thought we did a really good job at that in the third quarter. We forced them to make mistakes and took advantage of it on the offensive end to take the lead at one point in the third quarter. We just need to learn to play with that kind of intensity the whole game. When we do, these close games will eventually start going our way. Jace Tibbot led CMS in scoring with 9 points, followed by Xavier Cooley with 7. Mason Jones and Kage Mitchem added three points apiece, while Khris Clark and Holland Moore each chipped in two. Despite the loss, CMS showed resilience and growth, particularly in the second half, and will look to build on that momentum in their next outing. The Spartans are back in action tonight when they host Seton Catholic at Spartan Arena. 7th grade is scheduled to start at 6pm.