By RICHARD TORRES
For The Reporter
INDIANAPOLIS – An eighth consecutive victory seemed like a longshot for unbeaten Carmel on Saturday, but instead of panicking the Greyhounds believed.
Down by 17 points in the second quarter after top-ranked Class 3A Cathedral strung together a 20-3 run in the first half, the 4A seventh-ranked Greyhounds began chipping away before halftime and completed their comeback in the second half to win on the road, 63-62.
“It’s always keeping faith. It’s our mentality,” Carmel junior Cash Daniels said. “It’s talking to each other, helping each other out every day in practice, staying on top of each other and not just going through the motions. Giving 110 percent. That’s why we won.”
Defensive execution, rediscovering its offense and a trio of double-digit scorers helped, as Carmel (8-0) survived 11 deadlocks – seven in the fourth quarter – and six lead changes overall.
“I felt once we settled in, our offense moved a little better. We had some bad turnovers early. We had some bad shots. We had a stretch where it was really working against us,” Carmel coach Ryan Osborn said. “Those bad shots turned into bad defensive possessions.”
Nine turnovers in the first half – 16 in total for the game – paired with an eight-minute scoring drought through the first and second quarters put the Greyhounds in a 29-12 hole with 3 minutes, 51 seconds remaining until halftime.
An 11-2 run by Carmel late in the second quarter sparked the rally.
First, junior Vince Nover reignited the offense by sinking a pair of free throws to end the Greyhounds’ scoreless streak with 2:46 left in the frame.
Daniels scored the Hounds’ first field goal in nearly nine minutes before senior Julian Vogt capped the run with a 3-pointer at the buzzer to trim the deficit to 31-23 by halftime.
“Vince came in tonight and had some huge rebounds, then the big play of the game. It’s an 11-point game, and Vince gets that huge rebound. He throws it ahead, and Julian hits the three to make it eight,” Osborn said. “We were able to go to the locker room with some momentum. Then it was all about getting back to us.”
A 7-0 start to the third pulled Carmel within one point, 31-30, and a 3-pointer by senior Evan Harrell with 1:01 left in the quarter supplied the Hounds with their first lead, 43-42, since the opening frame.
“Games like this, you get down, and you’re on the road in a tough environment, and you find a way to win without a starter,” Osborn said. “Aiden [Dickerson] has been a huge piece of what we’re doing defensively, so to come in here and not have him, guys stepped up.”
Vogt, who shot 4 of 6 from 3-point range, finished with 12 points, while Harrell had 16 points and six rebounds.
Daniels, who made his return to Cathedral after transferring to Carmel over the summer, posted a team-high 19 points with five assists.
Daniels scored six points in the third quarter, including a buzzer-beating layup to put Carmel up 45-42 heading into the fourth.
“It’s a tough deal. Like any 16-, 17-year-old kid, just feeling the weight of the world. Everybody’s watching. Everybody wants to see you screw up. Everybody thinks you’re going to. It’s a tough situation, and I’m proud of him,” Osborn said. “At the end of the day for him, the win is everything.”
Carmel’s 3-point shooting was a factor. The Hounds converted 9 of 18 attempts with Harrell and senior JaMichael Fountain burying 2 of 3 from deep.
Harrell’s final trey snapped the third tie in the fourth, and Vogt’s last 3-pointer pushed Carmel ahead 63-62 with 1:33 remaining in the game.
“We’ve got to eliminate those segments where we get into silos and we stop connecting,” Osborn said. “They battled. They believe, and they’re a fun team to coach.”
The Hounds outrebounded the Fighting Irish 20-13 and turned their 36 percent first-half shooting into 62 percent in the second half with six 3-pointers.
“Just staying in the present moment has been a key for us, a big key to success. Hopefully, that continues,” Osborn said.
Carmel travels to Westfield on Jan. 10 before returning home against Plainfield on Jan. 16.
