The Panthers closed to within 8-7, but Luke Ungrund’s 3-pointer at the buzzer gave the Shoes an 11-7 edge after eight minutes. It was still a four-point margin, 16-12, when the Shoes went on an 8-3 surge to close the first half. Evan Addis connected on a shot from behind the arc and Evan Wermert did the same, again right before the horn sounded, to send THS to the locker room with a 24-15 lead at intermission.
“I was happy we weren’t down 20 points at halftime,” said Stote Reeder, who is in 15th year at Jerseyville. “We didn’t play well offensively at all. Our defense saved us.”
“There were some stretches where neither team scored much,” Chet Reeder added. “Both teams are pretty fundamentally sound. Stote and I have always stressed tough defense. Plus, with their size, they were tough to score on.”
Jerseyville scored the first six points of the third period to narrow the gap to three points, but Matthew Deters hit a jumper, Ungrund turned an aggressive drive to the basket into a three-point play and Wermert added another basket to build the T-Town lead to double digits, 31-21.
The Panthers managed to trim it to nine, but Brock Deters hit a free throw and Matthew Deters delivered yet another buzzer-beater, knocking down a 3-pointer, to make it a 13-point spread, 38-25, heading into the final eight minutes.
Jerseyville’s CJ Brunaugh opened the fourth period with a three-point play, but the Panthers never got closer the rest of the way. Ungrund connected again from long range and scored eight points to keep the Shoes comfortably in front down the stretch.
“I know they’ve struggled with a couple close losses, but T-Town is a good team. I’m proud of Chet and what he’s doing here,” Stote Reeder said. “And if Luke Ungrund plays like that every game, they will be capable of beating some really good teams.”
“I thought Matt and Luke were both terrific tonight,” Chet Reeder added. “Matt was thrown into the starting lineup at the last minute with Jordan home with the flu.
“I thought our entire team played a good defensive game,” the THS coach noted. “I like where this group is at right now, especially at the defensive end. I know we’re not shooting it real well right now, but we’re getting good shots.”
The Panthers, who dipped to 15-12 on the season, got 18 points from Tucker Shalley and 14 from Matthew Jackson.
Ungrund led all scorers with 19 points, while Wermert chipped in with 11. The Shoes shot 38 percent overall, connecting on 15-of-40 shots. They were 8-for-21 from 3-point range and 16-for-24 from the foul line.
The Shoes, now 18-9, will play three times this week. They are home Monday against St. Joseph-Ogden and Tuesday against Mattoon. They will then conclude the regular season Friday at Woodlawn.
