CARMEL – For the second time in as many games, Warsaw’s varsity boys basketball team saw its opponent go on an impressive first-half run.
The Tigers weren't able to overcome it this time, however, as their seven-game win streak ended in a 54-35 loss at Class 4A No. 2 Carmel Saturday night.
After trailing 12-2 early, Warsaw cut the deficit to five points at 15-10. The Greyhounds, who beat No. 1 Warren Central by 17 points Friday night, closed the first half on a 19-2 run and used a 19-of-24 performance at the free throw line to up their season record to 19-1.
“From the point that it was 15-10, after that we were just horrible,” said Warsaw coach Doug Ogle, whose team withstood a 22-0 run by Merrillville to beat the Pirates 55-50 on Feb. 9. “We were not very good after that point. You have to be more solid.
“We had 11 turnovers in the first half. The last two minutes of the first half just killed us. The latter part of the first half we were just not very good. I was pretty disappointed in how we played. They're really good, but we should be able to do better than that.”
The 19-point loss was the largest margin in the five games Warsaw has played Carmel, and the Tigers fell to 13-5 this season.
The Greyhounds are 5-0 against Warsaw, but the first three meetings were decided by five points or less, and last year's game was a nine-point margin.
On Saturday, Carmel led 15-5 after one quarter of play, 34-12 at halftime and 41-25 heading into the final frame.
Both teams made 14 baskets, including seven three-pointers each.
The difference in the 19-point win was Carmel's 19-of-24 effort at the free throw line.
The Tigers didn't attempt a charity shot.
In home wins over top-ranked and defending state champion Warren Central Friday and Warsaw Saturday, Carmel was 49 of 59 at the free throw line.
Six-foot-6 senior guard Andrew Owens was 6 of 8 from the field overall and 5 of 6 from three-point range en route to a game-high 17 points for the Greyhounds.
Six-foot-10 senior and Butler University-bound John Michael Mulloy tallied 15 points and eight rebounds for Carmel.
Karsten Windlan, a 5-10 senior guard who scored 19 points in the win over No. 1 Warren Central, scored 10 points in the win over Warsaw.
Carmel finished the game 14 of 32 from the field overall, 7 of 13 from the arc, and used a definite height advantage to outrebound the Tigers 27-16.
“Had Owens not shot as well as he did in the second half we could have got it back to reasonable,” said Ogle. “In the second half when we did better offensively, Owens would make a shot.
“We were much better in the second half ... we only have five turnovers in the second half. We took care of the ball better in the second half, we shot better and I thought we competed better in the second half. We did everything better than we did in the first half, the problem was we dug ourselves a 22-point hole, and that's hard to dig out of."
Warsaw finished the game 14 of 37 from the field overall and 7 of 19 from the arc.
Junior Blake Marsh scored a team-high 11 points for Warsaw, senior Tyler Metzinger finished with six points, and seniors Nolan Groninger and Trevor Rumple tallied five points each.
The Tigers have two games remaining before sectional play begins next week.
Warsaw will host Elkhart Memorial Tuesday with a chance to go undefeated in Northern Lakes Conference play for the fourth time in five years, and then host Carroll on senior night Friday.
Carmel beat Warsaw 63-32 in the junior varsity game, dropping the Tigers to 15-3.
