McCuen twins combine for 19, but Culver falls again
BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS
Sports Editor, RTC
CULVER — For those that have been part of the Bell game between the Argos and Culver boys basketball teams, there is not much that needs to be said to heighten the rivalry.
Thankfully for Argos, there was not much that could be said. The Dragons had a game against Caston on Tuesday, and practice was canceled Wednesday due to bad weather, so coach Nick Kindig said he only talked about Culver for five minutes prior to the gym arriving at John R. Nelson Gymnasium for Thursday’s game.
That was more than enough time as Argos went on a 10-0 run in the third quarter to go ahead for good, and they went on another 7-0 run to close out the game in earning a 41-27 win.
Luke Stults scored a game-high 17 points and added 15 rebounds for a double-double.
Zhayne Hellums added 10, including a steal and go-ahead basket in the third quarter that gave Argos an 18-17 lead. Mekhi Austin also had 10, all in the second half.
Jonas McCuen scored all six Culver points in the fourth quarter and scored a team-high 10. Caleb McCuen added nine.
Argos won the Bell for the ninth straight year and beat Culver for the 15th straight time, including sectional and Bi-County Tournament games.
Argos improved to 4-14 overall and 2-5 in the Hoosier North. Culver fell to 1-16, 0-6.
In addition to that five-minute chat after Tuesday’s 54-44 loss to Caston, Kindig said they also had a quick walk-through before this game.
“First half, we only gave up 14 points, but I didn’t think our defense was great,” Kindig said. “Third quarter, we played a lot better defense, and we rebounded. … First half, I think we got outrebounded, and that shouldn’t happen. So we played a lot more physical. I think we settled in. Obviously, this is a big game for everybody, so there were some nerves there in the first half. We kind of settled in, and settling in not just at the offensive end but at the defensive end too. And our guys did that, and we played a lot better in the second half.”
Culver committed only 12 turnovers while Argos had 19, and Culver held Argos scoreless for the first 3:46 of the fourth quarter. They climbed within 31-25 on two Jonas McCuen free throws and a driving layup with 4:40 left.
But then Austin took a pass at the foul line and drove to the hoop and dropped in a layup. He split a pair of free throws with 4:01 left to bump the lead to nine.
Jonas McCuen hit two free throws with 3:35 left that proved to be Culver’s final points.
Another drive to the rim from Austin after a Kenyan Beldon steal led to a layup, and Stults made five of six free throws over the final 1:49 to complete the scoring.
Stults only had two field goals but made 13 of 16 free throws. He has taken on a bigger role this year after the graduation of last year’s RTC Player of the Year Sean Richard.
“It feels like it’s not new to us, and I’m just really proud of us and our team for how much we’ve accomplished,” Stults said. “With losing Sean last year, we’re just really young, and I’ve had to step in and take Sean’s place. They’re big shoes to fill, and I’m just really proud of our sophomores – Kenyan, Zhayne and Mekhi. And role players – Joel (Trump), Obe (Salary), Preston (Mollette) … I’m just proud of them for how much they’ve overcome. It’s not easy to sit on the bench and wait for your name to be called.
“I’m just proud of my team for being so positive and always having a good attitude.”
Culver double and triple-teamed Stults when he touched the ball in the post. Otherwise, guards like Braylon Jackson, Adam Peterson and Jonas McCuen pestered Argos’ guards to make it difficult for him to even get a touch.
A putback from freshman reserve Kolton Howard and two Caleb McCuen free throws allowed Culver to stay within 16-14 at halftime.
Caleb McCuen drilled a 3-pointer 25 seconds into the second half to give Culver a 17-16 lead.
But Hellums had a steal and went coast to coast for a tough lefty finish. On the next possession, Stults was able to finish with a power layup over multiple defenders.
A Hellums 3-pointer made it 23-17. Stults split a pair of free throws. Then he hit two more free throws to complete the run and make it 26-17.
Jackson broke a six-and-a-half minute scoring drought to cut the lead to 26-19.
“We do that about every game we’ve played this year,” Culver first-year coach Drew Mosson said. “We go through these spurts where the ball just doesn’t seem to go through that cylinder. I thought we were getting pretty decent looks. Sometimes the ball doesn’t go through the hole, and tonight was one of those nights again.”
Culver was down 28-21 when Austin hit a 3-pointer from the right wing with three seconds left in the quarter to give Argos their first double-digit lead.
Argos 41, Culver 27
ARGOS (41) (4-14, 2-5)
Kenyan Beldon 0 0-0 0, Mekhi Austin 3 3-6 10, Zhayne Hellums 4 0-0 10, Mack Calhoun 0 0-0 0, Luke Stults 2 13-16 17, Preston Mollette 0 2-2 2, Obe Salary 0 0-0 0, Joel Trump 1 0-1 2
TEAM: 10 18-25 41
CULVER (27) (1-16, 0-6)
Braylon Jackson 1 1-2 3, Adam Peterson 0 0-0 0, Jonas McCuen 2 6-6 10, Caleb McCuen 2 4-8 9, Jordan Green 1 0-0 2, Drake Zorich 0 1-2 1, Kolton Howard 1 0-0 2
TEAM: 7 12-18 27
Three-point field goals:
Argos 3 (Hellums 2, Austin),
Culver 1 (C. McCuen)
Total fouls: Argos 18, Culver 25
Turnovers: Argos 19, Culver 12
Score by quarters
Argos 10 6 15 10 – 41
Culver 8 6 7 6 – 27
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